The Hybrid Is In Town
by TheBillFanatic1994
Summary: Alex Hart is vampire/witch hybrid and the prophesised catalyst for Klaus's death. When Alex came to Mystic Falls promising to help the supernaturals defeat Klaus she never expected to fall for the local vampire hunter. Please Read and review!
1. Chapter 1

_Hey guys this is my new vampire diaries fanfic :) its an Alaric/OC pairing which i havent found many of on her so hopefully it will be good :) It takes place after Tyler has been turned into a hybrid except he isnt sire bonded to Klaus. Its where Klaus leaves town leaving Stefan behind to watch Elena but Rebekah has also left for now too. Anyway please read and enjoy and review! Criticism is welcome! _

_Thanks Rachel x _

Chapter 1 

I sat in the apartment, drinking a glass of rosy red O negative and watching old black and white films that I remember seeing at the movies when they were first invented. The lights were on low and there was a bowl of sweet popcorn next to me. I know what you're thinking, blood and popcorn is surely disgusting. Well, for a vampire like me it is actually pretty tasty.

It was dark outside, well it would be considering it was the middle of the night, and I could see all the streetlights and the traffic lights and even a few car headlights from my chair as I looked out the window. You'd think that being a creature of the night I'd be out partying at this hour, or at least sinking my teeth into some poor human's defenceless neck but of course I'm not. I'm sitting in the apartment, an apartment that although I own I can't really call a home. How can something you live in only for a few months every few years, or sometimes decades in my case, be called a home?

The walls are still bare, not one painting or canvas or anything on them. They are white and boring and plain and make the place seem unlived in. That's usually the case. I bought the apartment when it was built fifteen years ago, its one of my newer properties, and I've lived in it only about eighteen months over that time, never any longer than four months in one go. Its pretty much void of anything that could make it looked like someone lived here. That's the way most of my properties looked. What's the point of making something look nice if you're either just going to leave it within the next couple of months or it's going to get trashed in some big almighty battle?

I was staying in just north of Virginia at the moment; it was a nice place, one of the better places I'd been in my long life. At three-hundred and sixty-eight years old I'd been to many places all over the world. I suppose I could live anywhere if I really wanted to. I might even be able to stay in one place if there was a time when I was willing to risk it – unfortunately, as much as I hated the fact, that time was fast approaching. I could live a life and just hope he doesn't get to me before I'm ready, before its time to fight back. I'd liked England, but after I escaped from him I wasn't in any real mood to go back. I'd only visited England twice since I got away. I'd liked Australia and Italy too. But for the last hundred and fifty years at least – except for the occasional holiday abroad – I'd stayed in America, travelling around and pretending I was one of them. I'd even developed an accent. How human of me.

The credits rolled on the T.V and I wasn't really in the mood to watch anymore films, or any other television programs for that matter. I always thought the T.V was a great invention, but since I've spent the majority of my life without such entertainment, it's hardly something I depend upon to keep myself entertained. Over the years, I'd made friends, not many since you never know who's going to turn you in. Charlotte had found her "soul mate", or so she'd claimed, in another vampire about forty years ago and they'd settled down together in Tuscany. I visited every few years but I didn't want to lead any danger to there door. It was a similar story for Rosetta and Carmen too, except they were in India and Romania. Right now, I was pretty much alone.

I knew that I wouldn't be alone for long; Elijah had told me already that she'd be calling soon. Jazira had predicted it. Really, I should be enjoying the peace and safety that I've got right now because soon all hell would be breaking loose and unfortunately I'd be right in the thick of it. Sometimes I think it would just be easier to run and hide some more, just like I have for the past two hundred and thirty three years since I got out of that tomb in 1778. But I know I can't run away because if I do I'll never be free. And as angry as I am, I know that I have to help her when she asks. I probably would have agreed to help even if Elijah hadn't asked me to.

I reached under the chair cushion and pulled out the calendar that I kept under there. It had been months since I'd last spoken to Elijah and I knew by now that he'd be dead. He knew when we spoke last that he was going to die soon. Jazira had predicted that too. I used to think that Elijah put too much faith in Jazira's predictions but I'd come to realise that they were actually scarily accurate. But I suppose that's nothing in my world. After all I do live in a world of vampires, witches, werewolves and God only knows what else. So really, Jazira's power or "gift" as Elijah used to call it. Really, I was probably one of the strangest of them all. As far as I'm aware, I'm the only one of my kind, a hybrid of a completely new making, a different kind of hybrid to…Klaus. That's why I was made all those years ago.

Yes, it should be anytime now, I thought to myself. I stood up, putting my empty glass down on the table. I crossed my arms across my chest and walked across the room to the big floor to ceiling window that covered the whole of one wall. I rested my head against the window and closed my eyes. I sucked in a deep breath. Was I really ready to come out of hiding? Was I ready to fight and protect and defend?

I blinked as the sun shone across the room, blinding me a little as I woke up. Thankfully I had one of those great day rings that let me walk around when the sun is up without getting burned up and baked. I like the sun, I like the way it makes me feel. I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have my ring. I couldn't imagine living and hiding in the dark again, I couldn't go back to that. There was no way on earth that I was going back there.

I stretched and smiled to myself as I let the warmth spread over me. I got out of bed and grabbed some clothes from the wardrobe. Fashion was something that had most certainly changed over the decades and over the centuries. My clothing had changed so much since I was turned. Everything was just so different. But I suppose that as time goes by you get used to the changes, but I suppose that if you didn't adapt then you would struggle to survive or struggle to hide in a changing society.

I helped myself to a bag of blood once I was dressed. I didn't drink from humans, at least not directly. Over the years I'd become acclimatised to death and destruction; it was part of the vampire way of life. I admit that I have killed before; most of the killing took place when I was young and freshly changed but sometimes even now the temptation can be too great to withstand. I drink blood from bags that are stolen from hospitals and other places that store blood bags. You'd be surprised by the blood trade in the vampire community for those who didn't want to harm the human population.

I was pulled from my reverie by a high pitched ringing sound; my phone. I gasped. There were very few people who had that number: Elijah and whoever Elijah had given that number to. I spun round quickly, if any humans had been watching I would have just looked like a blur to them. With shaking hands I picked up the phone. At first I couldn't answer, I literally couldn't answer it. It was like I was frozen to the spot. Was I really ready for this? Breathe, Alexandra, I told myself, it's now or never. I pressed the little green phone sign.

"Hello" I said, trying to keep my voice calm.

"Alexandra? Is that you?" she said on the other end of the phone.

"Yes, Katherine it's me" I said quietly.


	2. Chapter 2

_Please Review!_

Chapter 2 

I hadn't seen or heard from Katherine since 1863 but I had heard about her. It seemed that she'd died in 1864 but I'd never believed that. Katherine wouldn't give in and roll over that easy. She was a fighter and she wasn't afraid to kill to get what she wanted. Trust me, I knew that.

The first time we'd met in 1843, she'd tried to kill me.

_I was walking by the river with a chaperone that Elijah had sent to protect me, like the newbie vampire he sent could actually protect me, when I saw her walking the opposite way. I deliberately slowed my step and looked her away. I knew who she was, of course I did. She was the Petrova doppelganger; of course I knew who she was. Elijah had asked me to come here and meet her and to see if she'd be a threat. Elijah was obviously angry with her from running all those years ago but by 1845 he was more interested in defeating his brother. As soon as she saw me she let her veins show and her canines descend. She let out a low growl. William, the chaperone growled back and crouched to defend me. _

"_Easy, William" I said calmly "Elijah sent me, he wants to know if you can help us with something" _

"_Why would I help you?" Katherine asked me her hands on her hips. _

_I smiled. _

"_Because we want to kill Klaus" I informed her with a small smile. _

"_If you think that you can kill Klaus then you're insane" she taunted darkly "nobody can kill Niklaus" _

_She walked towards us, and bared her teeth menacingly once more. I raised a hand and she collapsed to her knees, clutching her skull. Around her was a circle of fire that shot high into the air. I let my hand fall to my side and after a moment Katherine pulled herself to her feet. _

"_What are you?" she asked me. _

_I smiled at her. _

"_I'm a hybrid" I grinned "now let's talk, Elijah needs you and you need Elijah" _

"I need your help, Alexandra" Katherine said "I really need your help"

"The Katherine I knew didn't ever ask for help" I replied "but maybe that Katherine desiccated in the tomb"

There was no response on the other end of the phone, just cool even breathing.

"The funny thing is, Katherine, that after what you did in 1863 you still expect me to help you" I said bitterly.

I already knew that I'd help her; I'd promised Elijah that I'd help her. And I really was sick of hiding and running. But I needed to get my bitterness out first. I was a bit of a grudge holder and I'd been holding onto this one for one hundred and forty eight years.

"I helped you when Elijah sent you" she said, her voice hardening.

"Yes" I said haughtily "because you had something to gain from it, Katherine. And if I remember correctly, there was some coercion involved. What do I have to gain from helping you?"

"Elijah came to see me before Klaus killed him. He said that I had to speak to you, because it's time, Alexandra. You need to come back to Mystic Falls. Klaus just left but he'll be back. You need to come now, we need to be ready"

I took a deep breath.

"I'll come to Mystic Falls, Katherine, and I'll help protect the doppelganger and the new hybrid werewolf. I'll even help Stefan Salvatore. Or at least I'll do my damn hardest. But I'm not doing this for you, Katherine. I'm doing this to repay Elijah and to kill Klaus"

"I wouldn't expect anything less from you, Alexandra. Let's just hope Jazira's right about you or we're all dead" Katherine said sternly but I was sure there was some teasing in her tone.

"It's not just me we need to hope Jazira's right about, Katherine. She predicted many things about many people; she orchestrated all of this, I hope she hasn't got the notes wrong"

"It would be just like Jazira to trick us all" Katherine chuckled.

"Are you sure your town of supernaturals are up to the challenge?" I taunted her.

"Oh we are" she said, I could hear the challenge and the laugh in her voice.

"I'll be there as soon as I can be" I said "I've got to pick up a few things first. Oh, and find me somewhere to stay, I'm not sleeping in a field like we did in fifty six in Nepal"

"You should be so lucky"

"Oh, and Katherine?"

"Yes?"

"I go by Alex now"

The phone line went dead and I smiled grimly to myself; I slid the phone into my pocket and ran my fingers through my hair. I grabbed a black holdall from underneath my bed. Using my the speed my vampire side gave me, I packed up the usual essentials. I was methodical, mechanical; clothes, toiletries, weapons, books. This was a familiar process; I had repeated it hundreds of times in my existence. I didn't even have to think about it.

The only difference this time, is that I large, heavy chest that Elijah had given me the last time he visited me. I didn't know what was in it. The lock had been cursed long ago so that only when I worked with the Bennett witch in Mystic Falls would this chest open. As I looked down at the chest, I was reminded of all the work that had went into this, all that Elijah and Jazira had worked for, all that Katherine and I had worked for. It was all coming to a head.

I shoved a few blood bags into my bag and slung it over my shoulder. I grabbed up my car keys and the door keys. I keyed in the alarm code and it started beeping. I locked the door and turned away.

"Goodbye for another decade" I sighed "maybe even forever"

It didn't take me long to drive through Virginia. My range rover blitzed down the highway. I took in the scenery around me; I suppose I did it because I knew that this might be the last time I drove around with freedom. Ok, so I'd never had any freedom, I was always on the run but I was hiding in plain sight. I could still travel and live in secret. And now, as soon as I reached Mystic Falls, that freedom to be hidden would be over. I'd be out in the open, practically calling Klaus to me. I was drawing him in. And everything could all go wrong.

As I passed the sign saying "Welcome to Mystic Falls", I picked up my phone and called Katherine on the number she'd used to call me earlier. Within two rings she answered.

"That was quick, I expected you to be half way to Siberia by now" Katherine said.

"If I had any sense I would be" I replied "now, are you going to tell me where I'm staying?"

"You're staying with Elena, the doppelganger" Katherine told me.

"Does she know that I'm staying with her?" I asked.

Katherine sighed dramatically.

"Yes, Elena knows. She's the one who offered. She'll do anything to save Stefan" she drawled.

I could practically hear the eye rolling in her voice.

"Hah! Like you wouldn't do anything to save him!" I said "so, where does this Elena live then?"

Katherine laughed once with sarcasm before giving me the address. I plugged it into my satellite navigation system. It was another one of those new age devices that made my life on the run so much easier. I found the house, it was big and grand, and I wondered whether it was old, like the ones back when the Salvatore's were turned. I parked up outside her house.

It was early evening and coming dark. The front was illuminated, as were a couple of the upstairs rooms.

"You can do this, Alex" I told myself.

I reached into the back of the car and pulled out my holdall and the chest, thankful for my super human strength. As I walked up the drive way, the front door opened. The porch light was on and Elena, or I assumed it was Elena since she was the double of Katherine, was lit up under it. Even though I knew she was the doppelganger, it still shocked me how much she looked like Katherine, physically at least. Behind her, I could see a teenager, her brother, the one who had been brought back from the dead.

I could tell that she was nervous about meeting me. She was biting on her lip and stepping from foot to foot, but she stood up straight and extended her hand.

"I'm Elena Gilbert, thanks for coming, it's nice to meet you" she introduced formally, just like she'd been taught as a member of one of the founding families, "and this is my brother, Jeremy"

"Alexandra Hart, but call me Alex" I smiled warmly, shaking her hand.

Jeremy stepped forward and shook my hand too. He kept his face blank, unfeeling and void of emotion. Great, it was clearly obvious that Elena hadn't consulted her brother when she decided to let me stay. I suppose that that's what love does to you.

"I'll be in my room if you need me" Jeremy said to Elena before turning on his heel and walking back inside.

Elena smiled stiffly at me.

"I'm sure I can find somewhere else to stay…if it's going to be a problem" I offered.

Elena shook her head and glared at her brother's retreating back.

"No, you're here to help us" she said confidently, loudly and firmly, as if she were trying to convince herself as well as Jeremy.

She shrugged her shoulders and turned back around, walking back into the house. She expected me to follow. I smiled to myself and followed her in, my feet crossing over the threshold. Elena whirled round and gasped.

"You're a vampire…you have to be invited in…and I didn't invite you" Elena stuttered.

"It's a hybrid thing" I explained "sometimes the witchy side overrules the vampire side of me. Look, Elena, I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to help you and to help myself. I understand that you would be uncomfortable with me being here but just because I'm a vampire it doesn't make me evil. You dated a vampire, you're best friends with another vampire and her boyfriend is a werewolf-vampire hybrid! You are best friends with a Bennett witch. Even you're mother was a vampire. Not to mention you're the Petrova doppelganger! Do I need to continue? I'm not the only supernatural creature around here. So maybe, you could see that I'm not the devil?"

Elena was quiet for a moment before she smirked a little.

"You forgot about Damon and Alaric" she quipped before turning towards the kitchen "there's a lasagne in the oven if you want some, and some cookie dough ice cream in the freezer for desert"

It was a peace offering, an olive branch. It was something at least.


	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry its been so long but to make up for it i'm going to post a few chapters up today. i've had no reviews but a few followers so im posting anywhere...but reviews would be much appreciated. _

_Thanks, hope you enjoy the story! _

Chapter 3 

"I really think that this is a bad idea, Alexandra" Katherine tutted, her arms folded across her chest.

"Well, I disagree, Katherine. I'm enrolling at Mystic Falls High School and that's that. That's where almost all the supernatural beings of this town are going to be. So that's where I need to be" I explained.

"Surely high school is a step too far" Katherine said as she sat down in Elena's living room.

Elena and Jeremy were both getting ready upstairs. I could hear Elena humming to herself and Jeremy listening to his music as he pulled on his t-shirt. This enhanced listening could be useful at times but it could also be one of the most awkward things too. Take last night for example, as I lay in the spare bedroom I could hear everything going on outside, I would be able to hear if any of Klaus's cronies were outside, however I could also hear Elena crying in her room, and Jeremy having a private conversation on the phone to Bonnie. But I suppose there were always going to be good and bad sides to being a hybrid like me.

"I discussed it with Elena last night and she thinks it's a good idea" I shrugged.

I'd been up since half four, nervous for the day. I know, I'm over three hundred years old and I'm nervous about attending high school. How pathetic? But I'd never been before, it was an experience that I'd always wanted but could never have. When I'd woken after a rough night's sleep in an unfamiliar place – not that that was new to me – I just lay in the bed for a while, thinking about it.

Katherine cocked her head to the side and smirked.

"You're genuinely excited, aren't you?" she laughed.

"Laugh if you want, Katerina, at least I won't be hiding out all day like you. I'll be living my life in the open" I said triumphantly as I downed a glass of blood.

"How are you even going to enrol without a parent of guardian?" Katherine asked me.

It was my turn to smirk.

"There's always compulsion…or I have my witchy ways" I said mysteriously.

As I said this, I looked at a wilting bunch of flowers on the window sill behind her and concentrated for a moment. They bloomed and became beautifully coloured and vibrant.

"Nice parlour trick" Katherine taunted.

"I know" I said and nodded in affirmation.

"I'll be off then" Katherine said with a dramatic roll of the eyes "come to the boarding house after school, the 'gang' is having a meeting".

I raised an eyebrow at her use of quotation marks around the word 'gang'. She smirked again before leaving in a blur. I reached for my bag and slung it over my shoulder.

"Elena!" I called up the stairs.

I heard her slowly walk to the top of the stairs so that she could see me.

"Yes, Alex" she asked carefully.

She was still stiff and remote with me, not that I could blame her. Obviously it didn't surprise me. She didn't know me like she did the others; she knew that I was a vampire that could kill her while she slept. But I still felt like me being here was stupid. What was Elijah thinking? Did he really expect them just to accept me and trust me to help them? I had a reason to trust him and be here and I suppose Katherine did too, but the others didn't. They were suspicious of me, they didn't trust me.

"I'm going now, I need to enrol for my senior year" I said with a small smile and a shrug of my shoulders.

She was quiet for a moment and she was biting her lip again.

"Ok, well I'll see you later?" she replied.

"Yeah, see you later" I said, turning around before quickly turning back, "oh, do I look ok? Like a high school student?"

Elena laughed a little nervously.

"Yeah…Alex…you look fine…I like the jeans" she complimented.

"Thank you" I smiled, embarrassed.

It didn't take me long to find the high school, being the observant hybrid that I am, I simply followed the road signs. I pulled into the car park and let out a nervous giggle.

"Pull yourself together, Alex" I muttered "you're hundreds of years older than these humans; you don't need to be scared!"

My pep talk wasn't all that peppy and it didn't really alleviate my nerves.

"Ok, show time" I said.

I grabbed my bag and climbed out of the car. I held my head high and smiled. I made my way across the yard to the main entrance and smiled at the receptionist.

"I need to enrol" I said calmly.

"I'm sorry, dear, but you can't just turn up on the first day of the semester" she chastised with a purse of the lips.

I made eye contact with the woman and concentrated.

"I need to enrol" I repeated.

"You need to enrol, follow me" she said in a monotone voice.

"With pleasure" I smiled.

The receptionist led me down a long corridor to the Principal's office. The principal was a woman with light brown hair that was perfectly coiffed. She stood up from her desk and shook my hand.

"I'm Mrs Hemmingway" she introduced.

"Alexandra Hart" I smiled.

"What is it exactly that I can do for you?" she asked me, confused.

"I need to enrol here, to start today" I told her.

"I'm afraid that's impossible, Miss Hart"

I sighed and made eye contact just like I had with the receptionist. I wasn't the biggest fan of compulsion; I didn't like the idea of taking away people's free will. I wouldn't want it to happen to me. But, I needed to be here, there was no way around that. Or at least that's the story I was sticking with.

"I need to enrol" I said strongly.

"And I said it's impossible" Mrs Hemmingway insisted, standing up from her desk.

I froze, why wasn't the compulsion working? It must be vervain which meant someone was supplying her. I'd have to try and find out who else was on vervain too. It was a good job that I was a hybrid, or I wouldn't have had any choice but to walk away. But I was a hybrid, I was a witch.

I forced my hands into fists, holding them tight. I started muttering an incantation under my breath. Mrs Hemmingway's eyes glazed over and she started to sway. I held my fists up in front of me, still casting my incantation, my voice getting louder. I opened my firsts quickly and Mrs Hemmingway blinked twice. She cleared her throat and reached into her desk draw, she pulled out some pieces of paper.

"Here are the enrolment forms" she said.

"Thank you, Mrs Hemmingway" I smiled.

Sometimes being a witch made life so much easier.

First period was History, with Alaric Saltzman, the human with the magic ring. I walked into the room with class already started. The class all turned to look at me. I noticed that Tyler, Elena, Stefan, Bonnie and Caroline were all in this class. Stefan Salvatore was here too, keeping an eye on things like Klaus had asked him. Alaric whirled around to face me. Even though it was 'dead' my heart leaped a little. He had light brown hair and honey eyes. He had a nice face; I could see he was a good person. He smiled at me.

"Can I help you?" he asked me.

"I'm new here…and this is my first lesson" I said nervously.

"Well I'm Alaric Saltzman but everyone here calls me Ric" he grinned.

"Alexandra Hart, but everyone calls me Alex" I said.

His eyes flashed with recognition and he shared a look with Elena. When his eyes found mine again they were more guarded. I held back the sigh that was ready to burst out of me. Just one more person that wouldn't trust me.

"Take a seat, please" he said, his words were definitely more muted.

I smiled but it was strained and took a seat next to one of many unknown people. I watched as Alaric and Elena shared another look, followed by Stefan turning to look at me. I held his eyes and he was the first to look away.

"Right, so…" Alaric addressed the class, officially starting my first lesson of high school.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 

Elena had asked me to sit with her at lunch but I'd politely declined, there was something I had to do, and I would probably need Bonnie Bennett's help to do it. I stood outside her classroom, waiting for her to leave. She seemed to be taking forever. I was never the most patient of people and when I was turned my impatience was heightened. When she eventually left the classroom I stepped out in front of her. She gasped and stepped back.

"Jesus, you nearly gave me a heart attack!" she said as she nervously straightened out her pleated skirt.

I rolled my eyes. Everybody's wariness around me was driving me crazy. Did I have to wear a neon sign saying "this vampire will not kill you"?

"Alex Hart. Bonnie Bennett. Let's move past the awkward pleasantries. I need you to come with me and not tell Elena or Katherine or any other person. Do we have a deal?"

Bonnie seemed to be a little shocked by me.

"Sorry" I apologised "I'll try that again. I need you to help me so that I can help you"

"Why does it need to be a secret?" Bonnie asked me.

"Because if I tell everyone what I'm doing then they're going to get their hopes up. I want to…diagnose…Stefan. I want to see how emotionless he is…how much of his humanity he has lost. Until I know that, I can't try and fix him. I might not be able to at all" I told her quietly.

"What do you need me to do?" Bonnie asked me carefully.

"First I need you to get Alaric Saltzman to vacate his classroom, I'm going to need it" I told her mysteriously "and then stay in there and focus your energy. I'll be there soon"

Bonnie was quiet for a moment and I thought she was going to tell me to find some other witch to do my bidding but she didn't. She nodded and turned in the direction of Alaric's classroom. I let out a sigh of relief that I wouldn't have to do this on my own. Of course I could do this by myself, but Bonnie's extra magic would make it a bit easier to try and get a look behind Klaus's compulsion. His compulsion was very strong; he was an Original after all.

I walked back in the direction of the cafeteria, hoping that Stefan would be there 'protecting' Elena from harm. I'd piqued his interest in me this morning in History class, and I was hoping that that interest would be enough to lure him away from her.

When I arrived in the cafeteria I scanned across the many tables until I found Stefan sitting in the back corner of the room. His arms were folded across his chest as he rested casually against the wall. His eyes flicked from Elena to me. I smirked and focused in the battle of water he had next to him. Nobody was watching, so I skidded the bottle across table and it fell into his lap. His eyes widened slightly and he looked back up at me. I smirked and turned around.

As I walked back out of the cafeteria I silently prayed that he would follow me; I even crossed my fingers for good luck. I walked briskly up the corridors, thankful that on each one there were at least a handful of people. I wanted to get him into Alaric's classroom before he tried to kill me. I could hear his footsteps not too far behind me. I knew I could take him if the worst came to the worst, but this wasn't about hurting him. After all, part of me coming here was to help him.

I knew that once I reached Alaric's classroom Stefan would realise what I was doing and turn away. Already I could hear his footsteps slowing as he started to click on to the fact that this could be a trap. I sped up and with a look I opened the door to Alaric's classroom. I quickly hid behind a locker just outside of the room. It brought back memories of when I was in the tomb, before my body desiccated, and I'd hide behind the memorials when Klaus sent his pet vampires down to check to see if I was still alive – ironic I know.

I waited till Stefan was outside of the classroom before I pounced out from behind the locker and pushed Stefan into the classroom. Bonnie was standing in the back corner of the room. She stepped backwards as Stefan crouched and bared his fangs.

"What do you want, witch?" he snarled at me.

I muttered a quick incantation and Stefan flew backwards into the wall. I leapt forwards and pinned him to it. I let my fangs descend and I felt the veins below my eyes become prominent.

"Shut up" I snapped at him.

"You're…" Stefan stuttered.

"Yes, I'm a hybrid" I interrupted "now shut up"

"Bonnie come over here" I called, reaching a hand back towards her and keeping one hand wrapped tightly around Stefan's throat.

"What do you want me to do?" she asked me.

"Hold my hand and put one hand on his chest. Don't worry I won't let him hurt you" I instructed.

She grasped my hand and I felt something a little bit like the flowing of a river, I felt our magic intertwine like ivy. She slowly placed her hand onto Stefan's chest. Carefully, I released my grip on Stefan's neck and placed my hand next to Bonnie's.

"Think about Stefan; think about the humanity he used to have. Think about what Klaus has done to him, think of the new Stefan" I said calmly as I closed my eyes.

I began chanting in Latin. I could feel Stefan tense under my hand as I reached into his mind. It was almost like there was a physical wall in his mind that was stopping me from seeing the old Stefan. It was like a barrier that warped around the emotions that Klaus had forced him to shut off. I concentrated harder, squeezing my eyes tight. I felt Bonnie grip my hand tighter and Stefan stiffened further beneath our hands.

I carried on chanting, powering against the walls Klaus had set up. I only wanted to look behind them. And then, with a gasp of energy, I was behind them. I could feel the emotions, the metaphorical switch that kept them turned off. I couldn't flip it back but I could still feel it.

I felt like I was being swallowed whole by the power that the wall was fighting back with.

"Let go, Bonnie" I gasped.

I felt her grip loosen on my hand and she stepped backwards. I removed my hand from Stefan's chest and stepped back too. I looked to Bonnie. She was bent double, resting her hands on her knees and gasping for breath. She had a trickle of blood running down over her lip from her nose. I stepped towards her and rubbed her back while she coughed.

I was distracted by Bonnie and didn't see Stefan leap towards me till I was knocked to the floor. The spell had weakened me but not by enough to stop me from fighting back. I lashed out at him, throwing him off of me and he landed on some tables, snapping them in two. He pounced back at me and pushed me to the ground. I let out a growl and flipped us so that I was crouched above him, pinning him to the floor by his neck.

"You think you can take me?" I snarled at him.

His eyes said that he knew he was beat. I reluctantly loosened my chokehold on his neck. Slowly I backed away from him.

"Get out of here before I change my mind and kill you" I threatened him, baring my fangs.

Stefan didn't think twice. He jumped up from the floor and fled from the room. When I was sure he was gone I collapsed backwards onto a table. Bonnie had recovered and sat down opposite me. She looked a little pale but otherwise ok. She was dabbing at the nose bleed with a tissue.

"That happen often?" I asked, gesturing towards her bleeding nose.

Bonnie shrugged.

"Not so much nowadays" she said quietly "what's the verdict on Stefan then?"

I sighed and slumped into a seat, running my hands through my hair.

"It's not good, I'm afraid, but I don't believe its impossible" I told her honestly "but, listen, don't tell anyone anything yet. Let me think on it for a bit".

"Have you done this before?" Bonnie asked me.

I nodded.

"I've undone Klaus's compulsion twice before now…but the compulsion wasn't as strong as it is now. It took a lot of power then, it's going to take more now. If I can even do it – but let's not dwell on this. We'll discuss it at the boarding house later" I told her.

Bonnie picked up her bag and headed towards the door.

"Oh, Bonnie?" I called.

"Yeah?" she said.

"Get something to eat, it'll help" I instructed with a small smile.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 

I arrived at the boarding house a little after the school day finished after I called in at the library to pick up some old books from the archives. Of course the action of taking the books from the archives wasn't exactly legal but I was doing it with good intentions.

The day had passed quickly, my lessons going by in a flash and by the time the bell rang I was dreading going to the boarding house. Really, I shouldn't have been that worried. I was doing them a favour by being here, yes I was doing something for myself too, but Katherine had asked me to come here and help. So really, there should have been a more team like atmosphere instead of them being scared and nervous around me and me being nervous and annoyed and out of place around them.

I parked the car next to Elena's and climbed out, throwing my backpack onto my shoulder. Taking in a deep breath, I walked up to the front door and knocked. Within seconds the door was pulled open and Damon Salvatore answered.

"Ah, the hybrid finally graces us with her presence" Damon said sarcastically, leaning against the door frame, "Damon Salvatore"

"I had business to attend to" I told him snippily "and we've already met"

"We have?" he questioned me.

"Yes, briefly, when you were a teenager" I told him with a roll of my eyes "aren't you going to move aside?"

Damon backed away from the door and let me inside. He led me through to one of the many rooms in the boarding house. Everybody was there. Elena and Bonnie were sitting on one sofa, Caroline and Tyler were sitting on another, and Alaric was standing at the back of the room with his arms folded across his chest. Katherine was sat in an armchair with a glass of blood in her hand.

"Everybody…the hybrid" Damon introduced dramatically, doing a mock bow.

I glared at him, and forced him down into a seat with a look. Bonnie tried to hide a snicker behind her hand but it didn't work out to well for her. He tried to get up but found that he couldn't.

"Neat trick" he said "now let me up before I rip your head off"

I cocked my head to the sighed and deliberated on whether to leave him stuck there for a bit longer. But in the end I let him up; I didn't want to make any enemies here. We were all on one side after all.

Katherine caught my eye and gave me a look which I assumed was meant to encourage me. I suppose she was a bit of an outsider here too. But, with Katherine, while they knew she wasn't the most trustworthy vampire they also knew that she wanted to save Stefan and kill Klaus. She had a lot to gain from being on their side. Me, however, they didn't trust. They didn't really know my motives or in fact anything about me. They had reasons to fear me.

The room was filled with really awkward tension, everyone averting their eyes and playing with the loose threads on their clothes. They appraised me, taking me in. Finally, Caroline spoke.

"You're not what I expected…you're short…and blonde" she blurted out.

This time most of the people in the room laughed at her and she looked down embarrassed.

"What did you expect?" I asked, a little curious myself.

"I don't know" she shrugged "like a superhero or something. No offence but you look a vampire even I could snap in two"

"Trust me, this is not the first time a vampire has said that, mind you they're all in a shallow grave now I suppose" I deadpanned.

The room went silent and Caroline shrank back nearer to Tyler.

"I'm kidding" I smiled nervously.

"Why are you here? Why did Katherine call you?" Elena blurted out.

I smiled a little.

"What has Katherine told you about me?" I hedged.

"Not much, just that you're a vampire-witch hybrid and that you might be able to help us save Stefan and kill Klaus" Caroline said cautiously.

"Well, I suppose that that's the basics of it" I said dryly "look, I'm only going to do this once, I don't like going over old history, so ask me anything you want. I'm an open book".

I sat down in the armchair and placed my hands in my lap, waiting for the twenty questions to begin. Like before, it was Caroline who asked the first question.

"How old are you?" she asked me.

"I was born in 1643, and I was turned in 1661. I'm three hundred and sixty eight years old" I informed her.

"How were you turned?" Elena asked curiously.

"Klaus and a few of the other originals fed me there blood, and then Klaus snapped my neck" I explained.

"You had vampire blood in you from different vampires?" Bonnie asked me incredulously.

"It's not completely unheard of; it makes the new vampire stronger if there are multiple doses of blood inside of the body" I told her "with the blood belonging to the originals it made my even stronger"

"You're younger than Katherine" Damon said smirked "so really, when you say that Katherine asked you to come here, you really mean that you don't have a choice. She could snap your neck before you even know what's going on"

I glared across at him and Katherine chuckled slightly. She stood up, hands on hips and a bit of grin on her face.

"I'm glad you think so highly of me, Damon" Katherine laughed "but no, Alexandra here is quite a bit stronger than me despite the fact than I am more than a century older than her"

I detected only the slightest bit of bitterness in her tone; it seemed that she'd pretty much accepted the fact that I was stronger than her. It had only taken her over a century to admit it to anyone out loud. Damon smirked once with sarcasm before crossing the room to the bar to pour himself a glass of bourbon.

"I'll have one of those" I called across to him.

He smiled tightly before getting out another glass and pouring me a drink. This time, Bonnie let out a little laugh before she was elbowed in the ribs by Elena who was hiding a smirk. Maybe the way to these people's hearts – no pun intended – was through sarcasm and putting Damon in his place, I mused to myself.

"What I don't understand" Ric said, speaking for the first time since I'd arrived at the boarding house, "is what's in it for you? Surely, a hybrid as powerful as you doesn't need our help"

Sarcasm dripped from his words. He was leaning against the door frame, looking quite handsome. Stop thinking those thoughts, I chastised myself.

"My freedom; I've been running and hiding ever since Elijah saved me, until now. Now, the time is right for me to tell Klaus exactly where I am" I said "if we work together, then it might just be possible for us to defeat him".

I purposely missed out his other question; I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of discussing that in front of everyone.

I stood up and took my drink from Damon, downing it in one go.

"Now that's the end of my trip down memory lane" I concluded handing Damon back his glass, "I need to see Stefan's room, look through his things etc, before he gets back"

"Why?" Elena asked, jumping to her feet, her eyes wide.

"Because it might help" I told her stubbornly.

"But that's an invasion of his privacy" she said weakly.

"Yes but I'm sure he'll thank me for it later if it helps him"

Elena nodded and sat back down, Bonnie squeezed her hand reassuringly. I felt my eyes zero in on their hands, like it was the window to their friendship. I'd never had a friend like that, not even before I was turned. I gulped and pulled my eyes away from them. I noticed that Ric was watching me. It was strange the way I made myself stand taller, like that would better his opinion of me.

"I'll show you his room" Ric offered.

"Thanks" I muttered as Ric led the way out of the room towards the staircase.

We walked in awkward silence up the stairs till we reached Stefan's room, which I realised was in the far reaches of the house. Could Damon and Caroline, with their vampire senses, still here us?

"What you said earlier, about why I needed help to defeat Klaus" I hedged.

Ric turned to look at me and nodded before turning back.

"I think you have the wrong view of me, maybe Katherine has played me up to be something bigger than I am, or maybe it's just me…but well, I'm not as super and powerful as I'm made out to be. Yes, I'm a vampire-witch hybrid, but I'm not an original. I can be killed, it's not easy I admit, but I can be killed without the need for one of those magical daggers. If I let him, even Damon could kill me"

I was babbling and I couldn't stop myself, something about him was making me nervous, like I had to justify who I was and what I was. I shouldn't have felt like that.

"On my own, I'm powerful, but I'm not powerful enough. Just like how you lot are powerful but not powerful enough. It was predicted, years and years ago, before I was born but not by much. That I'd be the catalyst in the killing of Klaus; that doesn't mean that his death rests solely on my shoulders" I explained.

I looked away embarrassedly and I knew that if I could blush I would be as red as a tomato.

"Katherine never said you were super" Ric smiled, his eyes glistened slightly.

"Well she should have" I laughed.

We didn't really find much in Stefan's room that would help us. I grabbed a few of his diaries to read at my leisure but other than that there wasn't much there. I hadn't expected to find anything really. If he had any common sense he would have hidden anything useful.

"This was a waste of my time then?" Ric said after we finished ransacking the room.

"Looks like it" I replied as I flumped down onto the hardwood floor.

Just as I sat down, the floorboard moved up slightly; it was loose. I stood back up and pulled back the rug that covered part of the wood floor. Alaric walked over to me. I knelt down and carefully pulled the floorboard up and out. I cloud of dust floated up into the air. Underneath where the floorboard should have been was a little cavity. There was a necklace in there and a few photographs, as well as a small book. There was a small wooden box at the bottom of the cavity. I reached in to pull out the things inside, reaching for the wooden box. I heard a sizzling sound and my hand burned. I yelped and skidded backwards from the cavity.

"What was that?" Alaric asked me as he knelt next to me "is that vervain on the box?"

I shook my head and reluctantly peered back inside the cavity.

"No, that's old magic" I sighed "the magic of the Original witch"

I heard footsteps on the stairs as the others came to see what was wrong. They all crowded in the doorway of Stefan's bedroom to see me flat on my back rubbing my sore hand.

"What's going on?" Katherine asked us.

"I got zapped by a magic box" I frowned, forcing myself to my feet.

Damon let out a bark of laughter.

"Ok, Damon, if you think you're hard enough, stick your hand in there" I challenged, gesturing to the cavity, "and pull out the box".

He strutted forwards and gingerly put his hand into the hole. When his hand touched the box, he shot backwards, falling onto the floor and roaring. I smirked at him.

"Should I pick it out since I'm not a vampire" Alaric offered.

"You won't be able to, that ring" I said, nodding to the ring, "is a supernatural ring and as soon as you put it on your finger the first time it will have made its mark on you. We need someone who is completely human who hasn't been touched by magic"

"How are we going to find someone like that?" Katherine said dryly.

"Would Matt be able to do it?" Elena asked me "he's human"

"No, he might still be human but he knows about this world. He would get zapped just like the rest of us. We need someone who is oblivious to all of this but would willingly get the box out for us" I sighed glumly.

"How did Stefan get the box in there if no supernatural creature can touch it?" Alaric said, asking the obvious question.

"I don't know, he could have had a human bring it in here for him I suppose. It depends on whether it is his box, it could belong to Klaus. Klaus has more connections to the Original witch, so she may have bewitched it to respond to him...to be honest I don't know until I can touch it and look inside" I sighed in defeat.

I placed the floorboard back in its position and pulled the rug back over it. I rubbed my forehead and headed back downstairs, saying a quick goodbye before leaving the house. I had a lot of reading to do.


	6. Chapter 6

_Hey :) Please let me know what you think of this fanfic! _

Chapter 6 

When I made to leave the classroom after History class the next day I was shocked to see Damon Salvatore waltzing in with Elena behind him.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"What a nice way to greet your comrade" Damon said sarcastically.

I glared at him.

"We've got an idea on how to get the box from Stefan's room" Elena spoke up, elbowing Damon in the ribs and glaring meaningfully at him.

I heard her hiss 'be nice' at him, as if that were a possibility for the elder Salvatore.

"Oh? What is it?" I asked, dumping my bag and leaning against one of the desks.

Elena bit her lip and Ric shook his head.

"She's not going to agree to this, no way" Ric said.

"Just tell me what it is" I interrupted.

"You get a human to come back with you to the boarding house" Elena said carefully "and you persuade them to get it for you"

"And how am I supposed to do that? I asked sceptically.

"You seduce them" Damon smirked.

I bounced off the desk until I was only standing in front of the two. I had my hands on my hips and I glared at them. Elena looked a little scared.

"I what?" I asked menacingly, my veins showing.

"Seduce them" Damon repeated, his eyes glinting mischievously.

"Seduce them?" I questioned.

Damon appraised me for a second, looking me up and down.

"You…have some appeal…I'm sure you'll manage to find _someone_ who will come back to the boarding house with you" Damon taunted.

I scoffed.

"I've no doubt" I snapped "why can't anyone else do it? Why don't you seduce some poor defenceless teenager and get them to get the box, hmm? Why does it have to be me?"

Damon smirked at me and was about to speak when Elena cut across him.

"Damon needs to create a distraction to keep Stefan away from the house while you retrieve the box" Elena explained "I can't do it because everyone still thinks Stefan and I are together and I'm going to help Damon distract Stefan. Caroline is dating Tyler so she can't do it"

"What about Bonnie? Can't she do it?" I insisted.

Elena pulled a face.

"She's with her cousin following up a lead"

I whizzed around at vampire speed to face Ric, it took his eyes a moment to refocus on me.

"What about you?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at him, "what's you're excuse?"

"Unlike you, I live in this town, I'm on the Council, I can't be seen to be picking up stranger's for one night stands" he smirked; he shared a look with Damon who smirked right back at him.

"Urgh! Fine, who cares about my reputation? I'll do it, but I'm not sleeping with anyone!" I snapped at them.

Damon and Alaric chuckled.

"You know" I started, glaring at Damon and Alaric, "when this is over and we've saved our asses, I'm really going to enjoy killing you both"

That night, I walked into the Mystic Grill, dressed to impress. Well, dressed to find someone to retrieve a magical item for me. Katherine had laughed and laughed when I told her what I was going to have to do in order to retrieve the box from below the floorboards in Stefan's room. I'd glared at her, bit my tongue to keep from snapping at her and had gone to my room to find something suitable to wear. After much deliberation I ended up wearing a short electric blue dress and matching heels.

As I entered the crowded restaurant I immediately clapped eyes on Alaric sitting at the bar with a bottle of beer in his hand. He tipped his head at me and tried not to smirk. I scowled at him before making my way over to the other end of the bar. The barman came over to me and smiled.

"What can I get you?" he asked me.

I ordered a glass of bourbon and while I was waiting I noticed Caroline and Tyler walk into the Grill, followed by Bonnie, Jeremy and Elena. On second glance I realised that Elena was actually Katherine in disguise. Her eyes were dancing mischievously. Great, they were all here to watch the show. I downed my drink and glared at them all.

It wasn't long before a guy came up to me. I plastered a fake smile on my face that I hoped looked seductive. I'd never really needed to do this before, not the human way, I always had compulsion or my magic on my side. This was strange for me.

"Hi, I'm Jay" he introduced with a cheeky smile.

"Alex" I greeted, shaking his hand warmly as I batted my eyelashes in his direction.

"Can I join you?" he asked me.

"Pull up a seat and buy me another drink" I told him.

After an hour or so, Jay was more or less putty in my hands. It felt wrong to me, I felt bad for what I was doing. He seemed a nice enough guy who was relatively good looking, but I wasn't attracted to him. I was using him, he was a pawn in a very dangerous game. I knew that when I asked him to come back to the boarding house with me that he would come. That made me feel even worse because when the box was retrieved I'd be compelling him to leave and go home. Unfortunately, I wouldn't be able to compel him to forget me; there were too many people here tonight who would see him leave with me. I could see Carol Lockwood sitting at one of the tables and around the room were a few other members of the council.

I glanced across the room at Alaric, he gestured to his watch and motioned for me to hurry all this up. Katherine, Caroline and Tyler looked as if they were watching a movie, waiting to see what would happen next. I gulped before giving Jay a wide smile. I leaned a little closer to him.

"So, Jay" I murmured "how about we go back to my place?"

I felt sick as the words slipped from my mouth. This was so wrong. Jay grinned and stood up, downing the remainder of his drink and shrugging on his coat. I followed suit by draining my glass of its drink. He clasped my hand in his and began pulling me towards the door. I looked back to see Ric and the others getting up too.

We got in my car and began driving towards the Boarding House. Of course, if I was a human, I'd have had too much to drink to be safely driving. But being a vampire I didn't really get all that drunk, if anything I was just a little tipsy. When I stopped the car Jay kissed me. I closed my eyes, swallowed the bile in my throat and kissed him back. I was most certainly going to hell for this – not that I wasn't heading there anyway.

"Let's go inside" I mumbled, pulling away and climbing out of the car.

The front door was unlocked, I led him inside. We climbed the stairs, he tried to kiss me at every opportunity. When I opened the door to Stefan's bedroom Jay grinned at me and reached towards the buttons of his shirt. My eyes widened. No! _That _was definitely not going to happen.

"Hey, could you do me a favour?" I asked him, fluttering my eyelashes and smiling lightly.

"Sure" he grinned, halting the work on his buttons.

I walked over to the loose floorboard and lifted it up. The box was still there, exactly where it was the last time I looked.

"Could you get this box out for me?" I said sweetly.

He looked a little confused but knelt down anyway. He reached in and pulled out the box. It didn't zap him like it had me. He reached it out to me. I shook my head and grabbed my handbag. I opened it up.

"Will you put it in here please?"

He dropped the box in lightly and I gingerly closed the bag. I put the bag back on the bed and stood back up. Jay did too. He looked really confused now. That made my guilt worse. I caught his eye.

"You're going to go home" I told him firmly "and forget everything about this box. You're going to remember having too much to drink and having a good night with me. Now go home"

He looked dazed for a moment before turning and walking out of the room and back the way we came. I grabbed my handbag and slowly followed him. Katherine, Caroline, Tyler and Ric were in one of the living rooms. Ric stood up as I walked in. I heard Jay shut the door with a slam. I shut my eyes for a second and clenched my fists.

"I've got the box" I told them mutedly "I'm going back to Elena's now"

"Aren't you going to show us the box?" Caroline asked.

"I can't get in it yet. I need to figure out a spell or something" I shrugged "either way it's going to take me a bit of time"

I turned to leave and walked out of the front door. From the doorway I could see Jay making his way up the road, back towards Mystic Falls. A lump formed in my throat. When Elijah asked me to do all this he didn't mention anything about using defenceless humans in this way. I'd led Jay on all night, kissed him, made him think that I would sleep with him, and then I compelled him to think that we had. I'd done bad things in my life, very bad things and this was not the worst by far, but it was still wrong and it somehow seemed worse than killing because when I killed that was it, they were dead and I would never see them again. There was every possibility that in a town like Mystic Falls I'd bump into him again, and I'd know exactly what I'd done to him.


	7. Chapter 7

I know its been a while but i've finally updated! Just want to say thank you to "cinnamonmyra1997" for reviewing! It means a lot and i hope you enjoy these two chapters :) also want to say thanks to those who've added this story to their alerts :) anyway, enjoy and let me know what you think!

Rachel xx

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Chapter 7 

I didn't feel like going to school the next day, I certainly wasn't in the mood to spend the day with adults who would treat me like I was I five years old and inferior to them. Most of the time, thinking about how I could snap there necks easily, I would laugh at the way they saw me; to them I looked like an innocent teenager, a little over five feet in height with soft blonde hair and big blue eyes. Well they wouldn't be so patronising if they saw my fangs descend.

As I curled up under my duvet in Elena's living room with a glass of blood flicking through the channels on the TV, still in my pyjamas, I wondered why I was reacting this way to what I'd done. Yes, it was wrong, like so many of the things I did in my life. But why was I reacting to it so badly. I've got a conscience and I feel bad for the people I have killed over the years, but now, here in Mystic Falls, I genuinely felt ill at the thought of what I'd done. Was it because I'd isolated myself most of my vampire life and I was for once free to feel? Was it because I was surrounded by people, humans? I shook my head and took another mouthful of blood.

I was prepared to spend the day like this. I was happy – well unhappy really - to laze around all day. But no, I was interrupted by the doorbell. With a grumble, I pulled myself to my feet and padded, bare foot, to the front door. When I pulled it open I was shocked to see Ric standing there. He had his hands shoved in his pockets and was looking a little embarrassed. His hair was a little messy but it looked good.

"What are you doing here, Ric?" I asked him, regretting the fact that I didn't have my dressing gown on, "Elena and Jeremy are at school, why aren't you?"

"Um, I came to see you, actually" he mumbled.

"Oh, come on in then" I said, opening the door wide and stepping back to let him through.

He walked through to the living room and shook his head when he saw my duvet "nest" and the TV on some bad reality show.

"I forget how human you guys are sometimes" he said gesturing to the TV and the mess on the sofa.

I smiled.

"Yeah, if you took away the fact that we're soulless, blood sucking creatures of the night then yes, we're not all that different" I smirked.

He chuckled.

"So, Ric, what did you want to see me for?" I asked him, sitting down on the sofa.

Ric sat down opposite me.

"Elena told me you weren't coming in to school, so I thought I'd come check on you" Ric explained embarrassedly "you know, we can't have our Klaus killer skipping town on us"

"Right" I replied with a small smile "well as you can see I'm not planning on skipping town anytime soon"

"Good" he laughed.

We sat there for a moment and didn't say anything.

"So, has Stefan noticed that we've took the box?" I asked him.

"I haven't spoken to Damon yet today so I don't know, but, I think we'd know by now if he did. Ripper Stefan would be out seeking revenge"

"Let him try" I challenged.

"Some of us aren't so indestructible" Ric pointed out.

"You've got you're ring, you'd be fine" I shrugged and winked at him.

Why did I do that? Why did I wink at him? Oh god now I look ike an idiot. Luckily for me, he didn't say anything about it, instead, he just kept on talking at me.

"All he has to do is take it off my finger and bye, bye Ric"

"After what you guys put me through last night I'd let him!" I joked.

Ric squirmed a little.

"Yeah, about that, sorry, we didn't think it would affect you so much" Ric apologised uncomfortably.

"Its fine" I lied "I'll get over it"

Ric checked his watch.

"I better get going, I said I'd only be gone an hour" Ric said.

"Oh, right, ok" I mumbled, standing up.

Ric walked towards the door, I followed behind.

"So, I'll see you later" he smiled, opening the front door and stepping out onto the porch.

"Yeah, bye" I told him.

He began walking forwards down the steps.

"Wait" I called, quickly following him down the steps at vampire speed, thankfully, no-one was around, "thanks for coming to check on me, it was really nice of you"

I quickly leaned forward and kissed his cheek before rushing straight back into Elena's house and slamming the door shut behind me. Shutting my eyes and resting my head against the frame, I heard him drive away.

Alaric's visit motivated me to find Damon. Once I was showered and dressed, I climbed into my car and drove round to the Boarding House. As I got closer I could hear shouting and hollering, smashing too.

"Oh great" I groaned "what's going on now?"

I stopped the car and bounced out, speeding up the steps and into the house. Inside, Stefan was in the living room, growling menacingly at his brother who he had pressed against the wall with a stake made from the coffee table leg pressed against his chest. Damon was growling just as menacingly back at Stefan.

I zoomed forwards and pulled Stefan off of Damon, throwing him into the opposite wall. When he picked himself up off the floor, Stefan stalked towards me.

"Where is it?" he roared.

"Where's what, sweetie?" I taunted.

"Don't play games with me" he yelled "tell me where the box is!"

"I don't know what you're talking about"

"Argh!"

Stefan charged forwards, reaching towards me with his stake. I flipped him over and held him in a chokehold.

"As much as I'm enjoying this, I don't really fancy holding him like this forever" I told Damon "do you have anywhere we can put him for now?"

"There's a cell in the basement" Damon told me.

Damon walked over to a cupboard and opened it before pulling out a dangerous looking needle. With his jaw locked he walked back over to his brother and stabbed it into his neck. Stefan roared once more and I tightened my hold on him. He quickly went limp.

"Vervain" Damon said simply.

I nodded and hoisted him over my shoulder. Damon smirked at me carrying his brother on my back. He led my downstairs to the basement and I dumped him inside of the cell and locked the door.

"I guess he found out that we stole his box" I said.

"Really?" Damon replied sarcastically, "I never would have guessed"

I pursed my lips and chose not to rise to the bait.

"How long are we going to keep him in here?" Damon asked me.

I shrugged.

"As long as it takes for me to reverse Klaus's compulsion and get Stefan feeling again"

Damon snorted.

"And I'm just supposed to babysit him till then?"

"He's your brother, Damon, although I'm sure Katherine and Elena won't mind lending a hand" I smirked.

"And what about when Klaus turns up looking for his pet ripper?"

"I'll speak to Bonnie and see if we can sort something out" I sighed as we walked back upstairs "maybe we can do a cloaking spell or something to hide his prescence, but I suppose Klaus's witches would be able to undo it if they looked hard enough"

I shook my head and threw myself down into a chair. I rubbed my eyes and sighed.

"I don't know what to do, Damon, Klaus isn't easy to fool"

"Then reverse the compulsion quickly"

I glared at the elder Salvatore.

"It's not that simple" I snapped.

"You chant some voodoo mumbo-jumbo and light some candles, how hard can it be?"

Before Damon could blink I'd pounced out of my chair and I had him pinned to the wall. I growled at him, my fangs descending and the veins around my eyes becoming glaringly prominent.

"Don't you think I'm trying to help him? Don't you think I'm doing all I can? All you do is waltz around here spitting sarcasm and anger wherever you go, what have you done to help him? Why don't you help me instead of whining about me not doing enough, hmm? Doesn't that sound a little more productive?"

Damon nodded once and I let him go. He rubbed his neck and winced.

"Sorry, when I'm angry I have difficulty controlling my strength" I told him, "I snapped this vamp's neck once when I stubbed my I lost a million on the stock market when Wall Street crashed"

"I hope your kidding" Alaric said from the doorway, I jumped; I hadn't seen or heard him come in.

"Um…no" I admitted.

Alaric's eyes widened.

"That's…reassuring" Alaric muttered.

We all went pretty quiet then. I stood up.

"Well I better be off, I have a Stefan to decompel" I said, glaring at Damon.

"I'll come with you, maybe I can help" Alaric offered.

For a moment I was frozen, I didn't know what to say. Obviously, it was just an offer to help me so that we could save Stefan and kill Klaus. But it still made me a little nervous and jittery on the inside. How stupid is that?

"Um, sure, Ric, that would be great" I smiled, beginning to walk towards the door, Alaric began to follow me.

"Oh and Damon?" I called as I walked out of the door, stopping on the porch, "don't let you're brother feed on human blood ok, not even blood bags, leave him to me. Just throw him a book to read or something when he wakes up. And if Klaus turns up tell him I said hi before he kills you".

"Oh great, that's just great" I heard him mutter.

I heard him scuffle about and then move something.

"Twilight" I heard him mutter, then chuckle to himself.

"I'm sure Stefan and Edward have a lot in common" I said, loud enough for Damon to hear me, causing him to chuckle some more.

I laughed, shaking my head. Alaric raised his eyebrow at me. I realised that I must look like I was just laughing to myself about nothing.

"Damon's helping Stefan pass the time in the cell by providing Twilight as reading material" I informed Alaric.

"You vampires act more like children than children do sometimes" Alaric said with a shake of his head.

I rolled my eyes and climbed in my car. I drove out of the Salvatore driveway, Alaric driving in his car behind me. I knew it was stupid but I was looking forward to spending the evening with Alaric, even if it was going to be spent flicking through grimoires and old folklore books.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8 

I stifled a yawn behind my hand and pulled myself to my feet. I stretched and popped the joints in my back.

"You want another coffee?" I asked Alaric.

"Go on then, you've twisted my arm" Ric said.

I nodded and walked through into the kitchen, just in time to see Jeremy and Bonnie with their tongues down each other's throats, practically ripping clothes off each other. They bounced apart just as I turned back and dashed back to the living room at vampire speed.

"What?" Alaric asked with concern as his eyes readjusted to me being back in the room so quickly.

"I so need to find my own place while I'm here" I said.

Alaric laughed.

"what did you see?" he asked knowingly, I frowned, "I'm a teacher, remember? High school is a very treacherous place"

I laughed, flumping back down onto the floor.

"Well, tomorrow, I think I'm going to get myself a nice apartment somewhere, or a little house, where I won't have to worry about respecting the privacy of Elena or Jeremy"

"So you're planning on sticking around a while then?" Ric asked me.

"Well, I don't plan on going anywhere till we kill Klaus. After that I don't know. I'll see what my options are I guess"

I yawned again and Alaric checked his watch.

"Its late, I better be getting back" he said, standing up slowly.

"Why don't you save yourself a trip and just sleep on the couch? I'm sure Elena and Jeremy won't mind you staying" I offered, then I smirked, "they don't like me and they let me stay so they'll have no problem with you kipping here too"

"I wouldn't say that they don't like you…they don't know you…Elena and Jeremy have suffered a lot. They lost their parents, they lost Jenna. So many people they care about have suffered at the hands of vampires" Alaric tried to explain, "anyway, I probably shouldn't stay"

I sighed.

"What Klaus has done to all of you guys I understand it all. He…killed my family, stole me away, turned me and kept me prisoner and now he wants me back. If he wins this he'll kill me or bind me to do his bidding" I said quietly "so I understand why you all don't want to trust me because you all have a lot to lose, you could lose each other, what is left of your families, and you could lose your lives. But just remember I've got a lot to lose too, I've lost a lot too. Have you ever thought that maybe I've got some difficulty trusting you all as well?"

He smiled softly at me.

"I'll have a word, make sure everyone is a little more considerate of your situation here, and your willingness to help us" Alaric offered.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it" I smiled.

"And I'll sleep on the couch if that's ok?"

I nodded.

"Well, I'm going to go to bed. I'll see you in the morning, Ric"

"Night, Alex"

In the morning I woke up with a sickly feeling in the pit of my stomach. It was like a swell of darkness was just lying there. I closed my eyes for a moment to see if the feeling would go away. Of course I knew it wouldn't. I sighed and swung my legs out from under the duvet.

I quickly pulled on some clothes and ran a brush through my hair. I jogged down the stairs into the kitchen. Alaric, Jeremy, Elena and Bonnie were sitting down eating breakfast, drinking coffee and chattering away like everything was normal. I sighed and poured myself a cup of coffee.

"I hear you're going apartment hunting today" Elena said "I hope you don't feel like we want you to leave, you're welcome to stay here as long as you need to, Alex"

"Thanks, Elena, but you guys need your privacy" I said pointedly, giving a look to Jeremy and Bonnie.

Alaric chuckled while Jeremy and Bonnie both blushed.

"Anyway" I began after downing some more coffee "unfortunately we've got other plans today"

"Other plans?" Jeremy asked.

"Yeah…Klaus is back in town which means he'll be coming to check on you, Elena, and Stefan. So…"

"Wait" Alaric interrupted "how do you know Klaus's back?"

"Let's just say my witchy senses are tingling" I explained patiently "he's back, or at least he's getting back today…I can feel it"

"I'm a witch and I can't feel it" Bonnie frowned, her bottom lip jutting out like she was an upset toddler.

"You will one day" I laughed "it'll come with time. Don't be so eager to feel evil, it's not a pleasant feeling"

"What does it feel like?" Jeremy asked curiously.

I cocked my head to the side and thought about it for a moment.

"Like a whole host of snakes are wriggling around in the pit of your stomach, hissing and biting at your skin. I don't know a way to describe it other than darkness really" I replied.

"Ok, now we've established the creepy darkness and death feeling, can we decide what we're going to do?" Alaric demanded impatiently.

I rolled my eyes.

"Well, I suggest that you and Jeremy go back to your apartment and bring all the weapons you can to the boarding house. Then if you can make some lovely vervain and wolfsbane grenades it would be much appreciated" I instructed to Ric.

"Yes sir!" he said with a wink before downing his coffee and grabbing his car keys. Jeremy followed him out.

"Bonnie, Elena? You're coming with me" I smiled.

"Where are we going?" Elena asked.

"We're going to save your boyfriend"

Elena's face lit up and she practically bounced out of her chair. Bonnie just looked nervous and a little apprehensive.

The drive to the Salvatore Boarding House was quick and the air in the car was fraught with emotions. Elena had spoken to Caroline and Tyler and they were going to meet us at the boarding house. When we pulled up, Katherine was standing on the porch. She actually smiled at me when I got out of the car which was a little strange to say the least.

I grabbed two large holdalls from the trunk of the car – each would be far too heavy for a human to carry. They were filled with weaponry, spell books, etc. I entered the house and dumped the bags in the living room. Damon was already standing in there, with a glass of bourbon in his hand.

"How's your brother?" I asked him.

"How do you think? Angry and demanding blood" Damon informed me.

I sighed and nodded.

"Damon? Have you got any more of those vervain needles? Make him a little easier to handle?"

Damon nodded and left the room.

"How are you planning on reversing the compulsion?" Bonnie asked me as I unzipped one of the holdalls.

"_We _are going to reverse the compulsion by harnessing the energy of the supernatural beings we have on our side" I told her.

"That sounds pretty simple" she replied, raising an eyebrow sceptically.

"Well" I shrugged, as I pulled a knife out of the bag, "maybe it's not quite that simple but that's the basic idea"

Elena and Bonnie's eyes were glued to the knife. I rolled my eyes.

"Don't worry, it won't hurt…much".

Before they could say anything else, Alaric, Jeremy, Caroline and Tyler entered the house.

"Hey, you're just in time for the party" Damon drawled as he sauntered back into the room with a syringe in his hand.

I rolled my eyes.

"Ok we all need to go down to the basement" I said.

I gathered up some candles and carried them down with me. Slowly, we walked down the stairs. As we got closer to the cell Stefan let out a roar.

"Was that supposed to scare me, Salvatore?" I taunted as I reached the doorway.

Stefan growled and bared his fangs at me. I grinned at him and with a look pinned him to the far wall of the cell.

"Inject him with vervain, not enough to knock him out, but just enough to so I don't have to worry about him killing any of you" I said.

Damon opened the door of the cell, crossed the room and stabbed his brother with the needle. Stefan visibly weakened and I changed my hold on him so that he was pinned to the floor.

"Can you all sit on the floor around him, holding hands?" I asked them.

"Holding hands?" Damon snapped.

"It's to strengthen the connections in the circle. Stop your whining and do it" I ordered.

Gingerly, they all began arranging themselves around Stefan. Elena went to sit down but I stopped her.

"No, you're not part of the circle" I said with a slight shake of my head.

I held back a giggle as Alaric and Damon sat down next to each other and held hands.

"What do you want me to do then?" Elena asked a little snarkily.

I lifted up the knife and reached for Elena's hand. She tensed as I cut a gash the length of the palm of her hand but didn't pull away. I then cut Stefan's hand so they matched.

"Sit down next to him and press your palm to his" I told her and she did as I asked immediately.

I sat down next to Alaric and Bonnie and held their hands. Ric squeezed my hand reassuringly. I closed my eyes and began chanting.

"Um sun cas del santio…um sun cas del santio…um sun cas del santio" I repeated.

The air around us seemed to become electric, charged. Wind whipped around us, trying to pull each link of the circle apart. A hissing whispered through the air. Bonnie joined in the chanting, adding her magic to the spell. Suddenly it was like all the air was being sucked out of the room and my head was going all airy and strange.

"Um sun cas del santio" I repeated, my hands clenching Bonnie and Alaric.

I screamed as pain flared through my undead heart but immediately carried on chanting. I could picture the walls around Stefan's emotions weakening and wobbling, almost at breaking point. My voice wavered as another bout of torturous pain raged through me. I didn't know how much more I could take.

"You can do this" I heard Alaric say "you can do this, Alex"

I scrunched my eyes shut and strengthened my link with Bonnie, I could feel her magic flowing through me and I knew she could feel my magic in her. With one last push I felt the walls around Stefan's humanity crumble. I heard a gasp from Stefan. And then everything went black.


	9. Chapter 9

Thank you to "music-freak10159" who really motivated me to post this chapter! Hope you all enjoy this chapter! Let me know what you think xx

Chapter 9

I blinked. My vision was fuzzy, a mass of blurred shapes. My head pounded and my stomach rolled. I blinked again and I saw a group of people standing over me. Damon smirked down at me. Katherine was watching me curiously with her hands on her hips. Bonnie, Caroline and Tyler hovered on the periphery. Alaric was closest to me, he looked pretty worried.

"Are you ok?" Caroline chirped.

I sat up, rubbing my forehead.

"I'm fine" I groaned, rotating my neck.

From my new position I could see Stefan standing at the back of the room; he looked a little pale but other wise ok. Elena was tucked under his arm. She smiled softly at me before gazing adoringly up at Stefan. He was looking at her with the exact same expression on his face. I smiled to myself, at least it worked.

"Bonnie, are you alright? It didn't hurt you?" I asked as I slowly got to my feet.

I wobbled, feeling light headed and woozy.

"I'm ok" Bonnie smiled.

I wobbled sideways and fell towards the wall at vampire speed. I leaned against the wall to balance myself.

"Can someone get me a blood bag?" I mumbled.

I saw Katherine flash out of the cell. She was back within seconds with a few blood bags in hand. She handed me one and I ripped it open. I drained the bag quickly and started on another. After the third bag was emptied of its contents, my head felt less fuzzy and I was able to stand without the aid of the wall to keep me upright. I looked up to see the non vampires in the room watching me with wide eyes and dropped jaws.

"How are you feeling?" I asked Stefan.

"Better, thank you" Stefan replied hesitantly.

"You don't feel any pull towards the switch? No compulsion tugging you back in?" I said.

"No" Stefan smiled.

"Good, then it worked, you're free to feel emotions as well as the rest of us"

"If you don't mind, I could really do with a lie down" I murmured, wobbling slightly towards the door.

As I reached the doorway I felt an arm slip around my waist, helping me walk. I looked up to see Alaric walking beside me, he smiled down at me. He helped me up the stairs.

"Thanks, Ric" I said gratefully "I think I'm just going to go lie down for a while"

After a moment, Ric said "well, if you want you could come to my apartment and I'll keep you company".

He flushed a little and I looked embarrassedly down at the floor.

"Well if you wouldn't mind…it would be nice" I smiled.

Alaric nodded, ducking his head slightly. We headed towards the door, my knees feeling like jelly and it wasn't just from the spell. Outside, it was fairly sunny, hardly any clouds in the sky, it didn't fit with the eerie feeling in my stomach and my heart. We got into Alaric's car since Elena had driven me and Bonnie over to the boarding house earlier.

"Elena and Stefan seemed happy" Ric commented, glancing at me.

"Yeah…I'm glad it worked" I agreed, rubbing circles into my temples to ease the throbbing.

We pulled up at Alaric's apartment and Alaric helped me walk up the stairs. I couldn't decide whether or not I liked being this needy. If I was being assisted by anyone else I'd hate it.

"Did you think it wouldn't work?" Alaric asked me as he opened the door to his apartment.

"To be honest, I didn't really know whether it would work. It's not like I do this sort of thing often. But…it did…and Stefan's got his humanity back" I shrugged,

Alaric smiled and pushed me down onto the sofa.

"I'll get us drinks, you relax" he urged.

I pushed off my shoes and sank deep into the soft cushions. I let out a sigh of relief. Alaric came back with a glass of bourbon for us each and a blood bag which I assumed was for me although I was a bit confused as how he came to have blood bags in his apartment. He handed me the glass and the bag and I quickly mixed the too.

"Thanks" I smiled "how come you have blood?"

"No problem" he grinned, sitting down in the armchair, "I keep a few bags around for Damon"

"Aww, you too are so in bromance!" I giggled.

Alaric rolled his eyes at me.

"He's just a good drinking buddy" he laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, I believe you!"

"So you're three hundred and sixty eight?" Ric asked me.

"Yep!" I told him, closing my eyes and burying my head in the cushion, "it's been a long life"

"Haven't you enjoyed it? You must have seen so much…the way society has changed; the inventions, the music…" Alaric trailed off wistfully.

"Yeah all that is great, I mean the early twentieth century was fantastic; the music…the fashion…it was amazing! But…there are some things that aren't so great…the wars, diseases, slavery!"

"I can't imagine being able to see so much history" Alaric mused.

"It is pretty cool" I grinned.

I yawned, my eyes drooping. It was rare for me, as a hybrid, to feel this tired. But I'd done a lot of magic today, which must have taken a lot out of me. It didn't take long for me to fall asleep.

I woke up coughing, actually coughing so much I felt like I was hacking up a lung. I opened my eyes and realised the room was clouded in thick black smoke. Flames licked at the curtains, at the cupboards, at everything. I panicked. I could feel the heat on my skin, and my head was so woozy that I thought I was going to pass out.

Alaric! Where was Alaric? I stumbled forwards, trying to see him through the smoke. I coughed some more, and my eyes burned. I tried chanting to clear some of the smoke but it barely made a difference. It must have been Klaus and one of his witches. They must have done this and were counteracting my magic. I kept on chanting, and the smoke dissipated slightly.

I could make out the shape of Alaric slumped in the chair. I fell towards him.

"Ric! Ric!" I choked.

He didn't wake up. I slapped him hard across the face. He still didn't stir. Oh god, please don't let him be dead. I listened, no; I could hear his heart beat. He was just unconscious. Bleary eyed, I hoisted Alaric onto my shoulder. I turned towards the door but before I could move, flames leaped high into the air, diving towards me. I flung up a hand and the flames halted. Freezing in mid air, the flames – or should I say the witch controlling them – fought against me.

The flames backed off slightly but enveloped the door. My legs wobbled and my lungs burned as I pushed my way forwards. I chanted as we reached the flames. I glanced back to the window, which was flame free. Before Klaus or the witch could figure out my plan, I raced forwards, and dived through the glass. We flew through the hair; I heard a moan and then a scream, as we fell the six storeys to the ground. So, Alaric was awake.

I landed deftly on the sidewalk below, it was dark, I must have been asleep for quite a while before the fire woke me up. Alaric squirmed on my shoulder so I set him down. He wobbled but managed to stay on his feet. From behind me I heard a soft chuckle and the sound of clicking heels. I whirled around to see Klaus and a young woman with flowing black hair and cold grey eyes. Klaus's eyes were twinkling dangerously. He clapped slowly, one after another as he sauntered closer.

"Bravo, my dear, you survived the inferno" he chuckled.

I glanced up at the apartment window, the flames were out of control, they'd soon spread to the other apartments. Why weren't people getting out already?

Klaus stepped closer. Klaus: the man who'd held me captive. The man I'd spent years running and hiding from. The man I was terrified of. I stepped back, pushing Alaric further behind me.

"What do you want, Klaus?" I asked.

He laughed.

"What do I want, Alexandra? Oh I want many things: the doppelganger's blood, revenge on Katerina, your life…"

My throat seemed to constrict with fear. How on earth was I going to get out of this? And more importantly how was I going to get Ric out of this? Despite my fear I still kept my head up high. Klaus nodded at the witch who smirked and stepped towards me. She raised an eyebrow and an invisible force sent Alaric and I flying backwards through the air; I noticed that we had landed not far from where his car was parked.

In a flash I was back on my feet, a spell danced off my tongue and my hand slashed through the air. The ground shook beneath Klaus and the witch's feet. They stumbled but didn't fall.

"That all you got, hybrid?" the witch taunted.

I let out a bitter laugh and charged forwards. The witch – whose identity I still didn't know – and I battled it out, spells and curses flying through the air. Klaus stood, relaxed, just watching us, a smirk plaguing his face. A stream of fire whistled through the air. I glanced to the side to where a cheap looking car was parked. I focused on it and it glided through the air, protecting me from the flames. When the rain of fire stopped, I dropped the car.

I saw that a trail of blood streamed from the woman's nose and eyes. In my mind I could feel the tightness of the binding that held her to Klaus. I knew that this wasn't the witch's fault. That's what made what happened next so much worse. I held my hands out in front of me, palms facing the ground. I rose, twirling, into the air until I was at least fifty feet up. I looked into the sky and then back down. There was a crack and a rumble in the air, and a great flash of light. Two bolts of lightening stormed down, both hitting the woman in the chest. Her face seemed to glow in the blue light of the bolts. She dropped to the floor.

When I landed, Klaus's face looked almost murderous.

"You're times nearly up, Alexandra; say your goodbyes while you can" Klaus spat before turning on his heel and disappearing.

My legs were like jelly and my hands shook as I stumbled to Alaric. He was clutching at his head, as he pulled himself up from the floor.

"You're bleeding" he whispered.

I wiped my hand across my nose, my hand came away bloody.

"I'm fine"

"You saved my life" Alaric stated.

"Contact with me, nearly got you killed!"

"No, you saved my life" Alaric repeated, edging closer to me.

With both of us slightly out of it and covered in blood, Ric kissed me. And I have to say it was the best kiss of my long existence so far.


	10. Chapter 10

_Sorry it's been so long but here is chapter 10 :) thanks for all the reviews and follows. Please let me know what you think, read and review! _

_Rachel xx _

Chapter 10 

A wolf whistle sent us flying apart. I spun round, crouching into a defensive position. I breathed a sigh of relief when I realised it was Damon, Stefan, Elena and Bonnie. I eased back up; I would have been blushing if it was biologically possible. Elena rushed over to Alaric, seeing he was woozy and covered in blood and cuts.

"Are you ok?" Bonnie asked me

"What happened?" Stefan added.

Damon was hovering next to Alaric, peering between me and his best friend curiously with a little smirk on his face.

"I'm ok, nothing a little blood won't fix" I smiled tightly "it was Klaus, and some witch"

I nodded across to the witch's body which was slumped on the floor, surrounded by a pool of blood. Bonnie gasped and rushed other to her. Damon flashed over and let out a small chuckle.

"She looks like she's been fried" Damon commented.

"She was, I hit her with some lightening" I informed them "I had to kill her, she was under Klaus's control, and well, she was doing her damned hardest to kill us"

"You can harness lightening?" Bonnie said with awe.

"Yeah…you'll pick it up eventually, when your powers develop. The elements are hard to wield"

Bonnie nodded, stood back up, and crossed back across the parking lot to us. I kept looking around, checking to see if Klaus or any of his henchman were coming back to finish us off. Stefan was helping hold Alaric up now and Elena had come to check on me.

"Alex, you're shaking" Elena whispered to me.

I looked down to my hands and realised that I was indeed shaking.

"Come on, let's get you back to the boarding house" Elena insisted, wrapping her arm around my shoulders and leading me towards her car. I hadn't even heard it when they arrived.

I let Elena lead me away; she pushed me into the car.

"I'll be right back" Elena smiled.

I heard Elena walk back to the group.

"What's going on with her?" I heard Damon ask.

"I don't know, maybe she used a lot of magic, drained her a little?" Bonnie suggested.

"She was terrified" Alaric slurred "Klaus…"

I zoned out, I didn't want to listen to them dissecting my behaviour. I curled my legs up beneath me and rested my head on the window and closed my eyes. A few minutes later I heard the car doors open. I opened my eyes to see Bonnie and Elena climbing into the front and Alaric slid into the back next to me.

"Where are Damon and Stefan?" I mumbled.

"They're…um…well they're getting rid of the body" Elena informed me, giving me a quick glance and a smile in the rear-view mirror. Alaric held my hand and squeezed it comfortingly.

When we arrived at the boarding house, I downed a blood bag and then poured myself a generous glass of bourbon. After a little while, my hands stopped shaking. Elena found me some of spare pyjamas to change into since my clothes were covered in blood and black smoke marks, and I wasn't really ready to go back to her place yet. Elena had found Alaric some of Stefan's clothes and he was now sleeping in one of the spare rooms.

I slumped down in an armchair. Elena and Bonnie sat down on a sofa, watching me cautiously.

"Don't worry" I told them with a small smile "I'm not having a breakdown"

They both laughed nervously.

"I'd fallen asleep on the sofa at Alaric's. I must have been sleeping for a while, I woke up choking. The room was on fire. I tried to put the flames out, with my magic, but the witch was fighting back. Ric had lost consciousness. I could barely see" I confessed quietly "I picked Ric up, tried to get out the door but the flames were burning me. So I jumped out of the window"

"You jumped out the window?" Elena repeated.

"Yeah…Klaus and the witch were waiting for us outside. He set the witch on us. She put up a hell of a fight, and well you saw what happened. Klaus was pretty angry, told me to say my goodbyes before my time ran out"

I let out a big sigh, happy to have gotten what happened off my chest.

"Are you scared?" Elena asked me.

"Yes" I nodded "I'm terrified of Klaus…that's why we're going to kill him. I won't live in fear for the rest of my life"

I took another swig of bourbon.

"Are you tired, Alex?" Elena asked me.

"Yes, a little" I admitted.

Elena got up, smiled at me, and led me upstairs to one of the spare bedrooms.

"See you in the morning, Alex" Elena said, shutting the door.

"Night" I whispered.

I woke up in the morning with an aching in my canines. I groaned, rolled out of bed and stumbled down the stairs, bleary eyed. I entered the kitchen to find the whole gang together. They chuckled when they saw me.

"Blood?" Caroline asked.

"Coffee?" Elena offered.

"Yes please" I muttered, flopping down at the table and reaching for a slice of toast.

The ache in my canines eased as I sipped at the glass of blood Caroline handed me. As my brain started to kick in I glanced around the room. It was strange seeing Katherine sitting there next to Elena and Stefan, just like she belonged. Alaric sat next to Damon, sipping coffee and munching on a pop tart. He smiled at me, butterflies exploded in my stomach. We had kissed. Last night, we had kissed. A small, smug, happy, smile leaked onto my face.

"So, brother, do you happen to know what was in that mysterious box you hid under your floorboards?" Damon asked Stefan.

"It was some sort of amulet, I'm not sure what it was exactly, and Klaus had one of his witches cast a spell on it to protect it and then told me to hide it"

"Was it the witch from last night who spelled it?" I asked him.

"Yeah I think so"

"Then, we should be able to open the box now, at least we should until Klaus gets another witch to spell it, or god forbid he summons it" I sighed, "wait…I'll summon it here from Elena's and we'll take a peek inside!"

Downing the remainder of my cup of coffee, I clicked my neck twice followed by my fingers. I closed my eyes, held out my hand in front of me and muttered a quick incantation. It took a little more effort than usual; my powers were clearly still drained from last night's showdown. I opened my eyes and the box appeared in front of me in a little poof of smoke. I reached out to touch it but pulled my hand away, I didn't really like the idea of being zapped again.

"Just open the box, what are you a hybrid or a mouse?" Damon snapped but when I looked up at him he winked. I had a sneaky suspicion that really, beneath it all he was a bit of nice guy.

Gingerly, I rested a finger on the box. It didn't zap me. I breathed a sigh of relief and flipped open the lid. I gasped. It was my mother's amulet, an amulet that had been passed down our family for generations. What was Klaus doing with it? How could I have forgotten about it?

"What's wrong, Alex?" Alaric asked me.

"This amulet, it was my mother's; she used to wear it everyday. It was a family heirloom" I stuttered.

"What would Klaus want with your mother's amulet?" questioned Katherine.

"I don't know…. it was just a necklace she wore, nothing special about it…well that's what I thought, I guess I don't know now" I sighed.

"Was your mother a witch?"

"Yes, my mother's side of the family were powerful witches, descendents of the original witch" I explained.

"You're related to Klaus?" Caroline gasped. All eyes were wide and trained on me.

I rolled my eyes at them.

"Yes I am related to the Originals, very, very distantly" I confessed, "Klaus liked to keep track of all of his family, not just the Originals; there was a prophecy that a child would be born with the power of the line of witches before her, making her more powerful than even the Original witch herself. When I was born my mother and father took me away, knowing what I was. I was raised in hiding, along with my two sisters and my brother"

I stood up and crossed to the sink, dropping my cups into it. I twisted the tap and blasted the water. I took a deep breath.

"We travelled, constantly on the run. Until my fourteenth birthday when they found us. Klaus murdered my family, in front of me. He tore my sisters apart, literally ripped them to pieces. Klaus took me away and eventually after much deliberation made me into this, the hybrid he thought he could control"

I dried the cups and turned back round towards the group which were watching me with sympathy playing in their eyes.

"I don't know what that amulet is for; my mother didn't tell me much about the prophecy or my family's magical history" I sighed "but, I'm sure that Rebekah would know".

"Ah Rebekah, the lovely Original vampire who is completely loyal to her psychopath of a brother" Damon responded, "So, all powerful hybrid, how do you suggest we go about speaking to her?"

"Just leave that to me, Klaus is back, so Rebekah will be here too. I'll find her and have a few words" I shrugged.

"Just don't let her kill you" Damon sniggered "we don't have many vampire-witch hybrids lying around the place"

"Careful, Damon, you're starting to sound like you actually care" I smirked, "right, I'm off to interrogate my great-great-whatever-great cousin"


	11. Chapter 11

Hey :) I'm really really sorry for not updating sooner, and I won't waste your time with my excuses. But here are the next two chapters to make up for my absence! Thank you for reviews and alerts, it really makes my day! So please review some more! :D

Rachel x

Chapter 11

Despite knowing I had to find Rebekah in order to figure out why my mother's amulet was important, I was putting it off. Rebekah, although slightly less psychotic than her brother, could still be very bad news. Back when I'd been captured and imprisoned by Klaus, Rebekah had sometimes come to visit me. She was nice to me, she'd bring me blood now and then, or she'd just talk to me. When Elijah freed me and we'd escaped, I saw Rebekah watching us. She looked betrayed by me, even though she'd been party to my imprisonment. Ever since, she'd helped Klaus hunt me down. Even now I still don't get how I'd upset her, after all it was her family who'd hurt me, her family who'd killed mine.

After a few hours of sitting in Elena's living room staring blankly at a locator spell and ignoring my phone – which had rang four times – I lit a few candles and lay out a map in front of me. I began chanting, I held out a crystal on a long string and circled it around the map. The crystal circled without my assistance and then dropped, I'd found her.

"Knock, knock" I called out, opening the door of an empty house just out of town "anyone home?"

Suddenly, I was dragged inside and thrown against a wall. A feminine hand wrapped around my throat and held me there. Rebekah snarled at me, baring her fangs. I snarled right back at her.

"It's been a long time, Alexandra, oh my brother will be pleased when I tell him I found you…you really should have stayed in hiding" Rebekah sniped.

"Klaus and I have already been reacquainted, afraid I fried his witch" I choked out "and it's good to see you too cousin, how have you been?"

I was taunting her, but really I was nervous, scared even. If I was an ordinary vampire I wouldn't be a match for her at all. But with my witch side thrown into the mix I could _maybe_ prove a problem for her in a fight. The thing with Rebekah, she tends to respond to attitude.

Rebekah let go of my throat, grabbed me by my shoulders and threw me across the room. I spun through the air and managed to land on my feet. I glared at Rebekah and she was flung into the wall. She snarled and fell to the floor.

"You know, I thought you had more sense than to come back here, you know he'll bind you or he'll kill you. Do you have a death wish or are you just stupid?" Rebekah remarked.

"I can't…I can't just run forever. If I don't help stop this, then Klaus…he'll hurt more people, he'll kill more people" I explained.

"You can't stop Niklaus, nobody can" Rebekah told me quietly.

I shrugged my shoulders, "isn't it worth a shot? Elijah thought so, Jazira thought so, and I do too. What is the point of eternal life if we have to live it in fear?"

It was quiet, neither of us speaking. Rebekah's eyes were hard, not necessarily calculating but making careful choices.

"I won't help you kill him, Alex. He's my _brother_" Rebekah sighed, I was about to interrupt when she held up her hand to stop me, "but I suppose helping you figure out his plans or whatever isn't the same…so, what can I help you with?"

I smiled at her and reached into my bag, taking out my mother's amulet. I held it up in front of me.

"We found this hidden by Klaus in the boarding house, spelled by the original witch. Yet once I killed Klaus's witch the spell was somehow removed. The amulet was my mother's, a trinket. Why is it so important to Klaus?" I explained.

"When I was a young vampire, before Niklaus killed our mother, there was a meteor near the village where we lived. My mother claimed the meteor's energy could be converted into mystical energy, she hoped to channel it. The meteor split into thousands of pieces in the atmosphere, as my mother channelled the energy a piece landed next to us" Rebekah divulged "she charmed the rock, harnessing and containing its energy"

"And she transformed it into the amulet?" I asked.

"Yes. She believed that the amulet would hold the power, which could be tapped into by witches, in times of great need. She adapted it to only respond to her own bloodline. Once my mother died, a friend of hers, a fellow witch passed the amulet to a distant relative of my mother, one of your ancestors"

"So, if I was in danger I could tap into the power of the amulet?"

"Theoretically yes, the amulet would boost your power by far. That's why, when Klaus imprisoned you he took the amulet. Your power, coupled with the power of the amulet, well, he's worried about the outcome"

"Really, it's like a battery pack, it would supercharge me" I grinned.

"Yes, that's about right" Rebekah chuckled.

I smiled at Rebekah and headed towards the door.

"Thank you…and if you ever want to swap sides, you're welcome to join our little 'gang'" I offered.

I drove back to the boarding house, as I still didn't have my own place in Mystic Falls, mulling over what Rebekah had told me. It still didn't explain why the spell placed on it had been removed by the death of the witch, all I could assume was that she'd somehow managed to bind her magic to the original spell, to twist it. It must have been quite an intricate spell. If Rebekah was right and the amulet could boost my power, then maybe I'd have a shot at killing Klaus. However, that didn't fit with what Jazira had prophesised as she'd said I was the catalyst, the main piece of the puzzle but not the only piece. The others had roles to play too.

I entered the Salvatore home, to find that almost everyone who had been there this morning had disappeared, the only ones who were left were Damon and Ric who were sitting drinking bourbon – what a surprise! – and going through some papers.

"Hey, guys" I greeted as I bounced into the room, I poured myself a drink and sat down.

Damon nodded at me.

"Hey" Ric greeted.

I grinned and threw myself at vampire speed into the seat next to him, he chuckled at my outlandish behaviour.

"What's put you in such a chipper mood? Haven't you just been to see murderess Barbie?" Damon smirked.

"Oi! No need to be mean, Mr Salvatore, Rebekah proved to be very helpful" I responded, sticking my tongue out at him and narrowing my eyes.

"Stop fighting children" Alaric chastised with a grin, "Alex, do tell us your good news"

"Well, Rebekah informed me that the amulet holds a force, a bit like a battery charge, which I should be able to tap into, I'll be zapped and my magic will be boosted" I exclaimed.

"Looks like Katherine was right, we may be able to kill Klaus after all" Damon commented.

"Glad you had faith in me all along!" I responded sarcastically.

It wasn't long before Damon decided he'd had enough of being sociable, and he disappeared off upstairs. I could vaguely hear him wandering around in his room before I heard a shower turn on. Alaric and I were alone, for the first time since we'd kissed. I turned towards him, unsure of what to say, thankfully he beat me to it.

"About yesterday, well, I just want you to know that I don't regret it" Alaric blurted.

"Oh? Well, um, I don't either…" I said, not really knowing what to say to him.

"But well, nothing else can happen between us"

"Is this because I'm a vampire?" I muttered.

"No, no.._no_! Alex that's not it at all. Look, you're frozen at 18, I'm supposed to be your history teacher, and well, yeah…" Alaric informed me, sighing and rubbing his eyes.

I turned away, took a breath then looked back.

"Oh…ok, I understand, was a bit of a mistake for us to kiss really. Hmm, well I best be off. Um, people to see you know." I murmured, forcing a smile and a chuckle.

I stood up, swallowed the remainder of my bourbon and plastered a smile onto my face. I made to move for the door when Ric grabbed my arm.

"Are you ok?" Ric asked.

"Yes im fine" I replied, I pulled my arm out of his grip, "I'll see you in class tomorrow"

Ric nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, see you in class"

I walked out of the boarding house with my head held high, mentally kicking myself for getting my hopes up. I vented my frustration by smashing a few trees, clearly I have issues with handling my emotions. I climbed in my car and drove. Silly, silly me.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

A month or so passed and nothing happened in Mystic Falls, it was creepy. Klaus was still here but he was being suspiciously quiet. We hadn't even crossed paths. It was strange how easy I was slipping into a 'normal' life. I'd got myself a nice little house a few streets away from where Bonnie and Caroline lived. When I moved in everyone helped me decorate. This was the only house I'd ever properly decorated, with colours other than cream and white. I bought furniture and put up paintings. I spent my weekdays in school and my evenings either at the boarding house or at Elena's, going over old spell books and teaching Bonnie more about witchcraft. I enjoyed my new life If I was going to die in Mystic Falls then I was going to live first.

But despite my new life, there were still worries. Like, we hadn't yet fully figured out a plan to kill Klaus. I knew that we wouldn't have much time once Klaus decided he was going to get rid of us. At the moment we were living without disturbance because Klaus wanted it that way.

Things with Alaric were fine, he was nice enough to me, we had a laugh when he was with the group. He'd helped me decorate with the others. But, well, it was still a little awkward. I still liked Ric, my feelings didn't disappear. But I refused to dwell on it that much, I had a mission to get on with.

"I don't think it's a good idea, Caroline…" I sighed, holding the phone to my ear with my shoulder as I typed up my literature essay.

"I think it's a _great_ idea, Alex! We're in need of a party!" Caroline enthused.

"How did you even know that it's my birthday tomorrow?" I mused.

Caroline let out a peel of laughter.

"Oh, Elena told me, although how she found out I don't know, Katherine maybe…anyway, it's your three hundred and sixty ninth birthday, you need to celebrate it in style! Of course we'll have to tell people it's your eighteenth, but hey, who cares right…" Caroline babbled.

"Ok, ok, I concede, throw a party but not too many people ok?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever…anyway, be at the boarding house tomorrow by nine, ok?" Caroline ordered sternly.

"I'll be there, I promise" I groaned.

"Yay! I can't wait, oh it is going to be great! Speak tomorrow, bye, love you! Bye, bye"

I laughed and shook my head at Caroline. She'd welcomed me into the group, she'd treated me with kindness, and was always so great to me. The least I could do was attend the party, act happy and grateful and at least attempt to have a good time. After all you don't turn three hundred and sixty nine every day.

School flew by the next day, lessons were good and all my new friends wished me happy birthday, giving me hugs, congratulating me. It was a nice day. When I got home I made some food and sat and read through one of Sheila Bennetts grimoires . When it got to seven I jumped in the shower, curled my hair and stood in front of my wardrobe, trying to work out what on earth I should wear to a party full of teenagers. In the end I decided on black tights, a short red dress, black biker boots and a leather jacket.

I drove to the boarding house, singing along to seventies disco tunes which were playing on the radio. I could hear music and laughing and screeching from a mile away. When I entered the house I was overwhelmed by the sound and the scents. Bodies danced everywhere, music blared, piercing my eardrums. Caroline jumped on me, grinning from ear to ear, a bottle in her hand. Elena and Bonnie flanked her, both smiling too.

"Isn't this amazing?" Caroline shrieked, wrapping an arm round my shoulder and gesturing around the room with the hand holding the bottle.

"Oh yeah…amazing was the word I had in mind" I remarked dryly.

Caroline chuckled, grabbed my hand and dragged me further into the house. She grinned at me, whipped round, picked something up off a table and then turned back around to face me. She thrust a neatly wrapped present into my arms. Elena and Bonnie quickly followed suit.

"Guys, you shouldn't have" I chastised

"Oh, shush woman, just open the presents" Elena laughed.

I smiled and placed the presents from Elena and Bonnie down on the table for a second. I unwrapped Caroline's present and smiled. A flowery summer dress. I grinned up at her.

"Ah thank you so much, Caroline, this is lovely!" I enthused.

"Oh, you're welcome, Alex" she replied, hugging me.

I opened Elena's present next, a bottle of wine, some bath salts and a big box of chocolates. I thanked her and she grinned and hugged me too. Bonnie gave me a necklace, laced with a protection charm and a voucher for the local hair salon.

"Protection charms?" I questioned.

"Every little helps, right?" Bonnie laughed.

"I guess so…the necklace is lovely though!".

We danced for a while, partying like normal people. It was wild and fun and great. I could almost forget that my life was on the line and we had Klaus to defeat. But I pushed that awful thought to the back of my mind, it was my birthday after all. Damon gave me alcohol which I happily threw back, and the others partied with me. It was going to be a great night.

A few hours later I stumbled out into the garden, a teensy bit tipsy, full of birthday cake, and singing to myself, Mamma Mia, I don't know why I was singing ABBA, it wasn't like that was playing at the party. Oh no, Caroline wouldn't have allowed such music. I giggled to myself and took another swig of alcohol out of the bottle of wine I was carrying.

"You having fun?" a voice asked.

I spun round to see Alaric walking out of the shadows towards me. I grinned at him. Oh what a pretty man!

"Oh yes, I'm really, really glad Caroline made me do this…you know at first I couldn't think of anything worse but it's been greeeaat!" I grinned.

"Ah I'm sure the alcohol helped" Ric laughed.

"I'm not drunk" I sniggered.

"Yeah, yeah course not" he remarked sarcastically.

I tripped a few circles around him at vampire speed before giggling and falling into a tree. I chortled some more.

"It's been ages since I had this much fun!" I enthused "best birthday ever"

Ric laughed and grabbed me as I almost fell over. I squinted up at him and he looked like he wanted to say something to me. I was about to ask what when I was ripped away from him and thrown across the garden. A hand wrapped round my mouth, and a stake was pressed to my heart. I thrashed against the hand, until I broke free. Six vampires loomed over me. One I recognised.

"Klaus" I gasped.

He had a hold on Ric and bit into his neck. Alaric cried out in pain. I thrashed some more.

"Leave him alone, Klaus!" I yelled.

"Oh you don't want to do that, Alexandra, you're coming with me" Klaus grinned.

He reached down, grabbed a solid hold on my neck. The last thing I remember was a sickening crunch.


	13. Chapter 13

Here is chapter 13, it took me a while to get it right, or at least reasonable, so fingers crossed its ok :) thank you for your continued support, please let me know what you think :) R & R

Rachel x

* * *

Chapter 13

My head was fuzzy as I came to, pain pounded against my skull. I made to rub my temples but I couldn't move my hands. What was going on? I panicked. I pulled at my hands. They were tied behind my back. I tried to snap the chains but I couldn't. I blinked a few times and glanced at my surroundings. It was a cellar of some description, the windows boarded up, the ceilings covered in cobwebs, and Alaric chained up next to me. The bite wound on his neck had healed.

"Ric? Ric?" I panicked, trying to wake him up. He didn't stir.

I manoeuvred, with skills a contortionist would be proud of so that the chains bound my hands in front of me rather than behind. I reached out and shook him but he still didn't stir. I held my hand to his neck and felt for a pulse, there wasn't one. Oh no.

"Please don't be dead, please, please, please don't be dead…Ric…don't you die on me, not today!" I pleaded.

Alaric gasped suddenly, sitting upright in a flash and panting. His eyes darted wildly around. My eyes flashed down to the ring on his finger and relief flooded threw me.

"Thank god!" I sighed.

"Where are we?" Alaric questioned.

I glanced around the room. There was nothing in it that could help me identify where we were. I shrugged.

"I don't know…one of Klaus's properties maybe" I guessed "they snapped my neck and I woke up here"

"Yeah…right after they snapped yours Klaus snapped mine"

I nodded.

"Do you have a plan?" Alaric asked me hopefully.

I sighed and shook my head.

"Are you strong enough….are you strong enough to kill him?" Ric whispered.

I thought about that. No, no I wasn't. He was older than me by a lot, I couldn't take him out on my own, it just wasn't possible. We'd have a fighting chance if I had my mother's amulet but I'd decided against wearing it for the party. Silly me.

"No, I don't think so" I admitted.

Alaric looked disappointed but nodded. He fidgeted, sitting with his arms locked in position behind his back wouldn't be comfortable. I focused on my own chains staring at them intently. I felt the metal in my mind, felt the way it held together, the loops. They snapped off my wrists, springing away from me then coiling like worms. I focused again, this time on Alaric's chains, soon he was free of them too.

I stood up, clicking out stiff joints. Alaric got to his feet too and grinned at me.

"Thanks"

"No problem" I said in hushed tones.

I made my way to the door and pushed against it, solid steel. I couldn't force my way through it. I growled at it. I didn't want to make too much noise, I didn't yet want to persuade Klaus to come down here and kill us Although, I had a sneaking suspicion that Klaus knew exactly what was going on in here. I could feel it.

I leapt forward and wrapped my arms around Alaric, pulling his body flush against mine. Slowly he responded. I brought my mouth to his ear.

"They're watching us, I can feel it. The others will be coming soon to try and get us, they'll want to save you. I'm strong enough to hold him off for a while, but well, they better hurry" I whispered, just loud enough for him to hear me.

I let go of Ric and backed away and began pacing, I really hated waiting.

Hours passed, I was slumped against a wall , focusing my energy in an attempt to listen out for any telepathic "calls" from Bonnie. I didn't think shed abandon us, I was sure she'd try and contact me in a witch to witch way. Unfortunately, there was a bit of barrier jarring the signal so to speak. Klaus must have had a few witches countering my attempts. If I'd pushed it, I probably could have gotten through, but I didn't want to waste my energy when Klaus could come into the cellar and attack us at any moment.

I was getting frustrated by all this waiting, it was annoying to say the least.

"Ok that's it" I growled, standing and heading for the stairs that led out of the basement.

"What are you doing?" Alaric asked, jumping up too.

"I'm not waiting any longer! He wants a fight, well I'm going to give him a fight"

I got to the top of the stairs and kicked it, hard. It didn't break, it was made of steel of course it wouldn't. I growled. I held out my hand in front of me twisted it to the side and shoved it forward. The door made a groaning, keening wail, it cracked, split down the middle. The door fell off its hinges. I turned back to Alaric who was standing at the bottom of the stairs.

"You coming or what?" I grinned "if I'm going down i'm getting you out of here first".

Alaric jogged up the stairs.

There was no point being quiet, Klaus and his fellow vampires would hear us no matter what. And I was pretty sure the crashing of the door had alerted them to our presence. The only option was to do the obvious and find an exit as soon as possible. I glanced around, the door was just across the hall. I listened. I could hear breathing, close by. They were waiting for us to make the move.

I closed my eyes, this wasn't going to be easy. I turned to Alaric and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. I stepped back, threw out my hand and the front door swung open with a clatter. Two vampires entered the hallway, now blocking the open door, they had polished wooden stakes in hand. I pushed Alaric into a corner and launched myself at the two men.

One of the men threw a punch at my face, knocking me backwards slightly.

"Didn't your momma tell you it's wrong to hit a lady?" I taunted, kicking the vampire in the face and throwing the other one across the room, "I forgive you, I'm no lady"

I reached for the stake one of the men had dropped. I staked the nearest vampire then flung it to Alaric. Three more vampires entered the fray. Alaric grinned and dived at the nearest one, throwing punches and slinging the stake like a pro. I kicked out at a vampire who tried to wrap his arm around my neck. I glanced back at Ric, he was fighting but how much longer could he keep on going? I looked to the door, it was clear.

"Ric!" I called as I killed another vampire "get out of here! Go!"

I focused on the vampire who was out to kill the guy I had serious feelings for. The vampire screamed, clawing at his own face. The remaining two vampires backed away from me. I heard a chuckle, Klaus entered the room, walking towards Ric. He was not going to hurt him, I wouldn't let him. A witch was with him. She glared at me.

I began casting, my hand out tensed in front of me. Blue tinted light pulsed in the gap between Klaus, and the witch, and Ric. Klaus reached for him, but his hand couldn't reach through. He growled. The witch was casting a curse right back at me. She was strong, I could feel her magic in my head.

"Run, you idiot!" I shouted to Alaric.

"I'm not leaving you here!" Alaric responded angrily as he eyed the blue light that was protecting him.

The two vampires stalked towards me, I gritted my teeth and held out my other hand towards them. The blue light was again emitted. My head was already feeling woozy.

"Don't be stupid, Ric. I can't hold them for long. Please…please go" I begged, I could feel a trickle of blood running down my nose; that hadn't happened for a while.

Alaric glared at Klaus, his jaw set in a hard line. He walked towards the door. The blue light holding the others in place. At the door, Alaric stopped and looked back to me.

"I'll get the others" Alaric promised "just keep fighting"

"I'll try" I smiled.

Alaric was out the door with a final glance back at me. I watched him running away till I could no longer see him in the distance. I turned back to Klaus and the witch. I was shaking with the effort of holding all four of them off. I closed my eyes. I reached out to Bonnie in my head, I could feel her searching, casting spells.

"Bonnie" I called out to her "Bonnie, can you hear me?"

"Alex? Is that you?" Bonnie gasped "Are you ok? Where are you? What's going…."

"Bonnie, listen ,you need to help Ric!" I pleaded "He got away but I can't hold Klaus off for long. Use a locator spell, get him home, and run, ok? I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry I couldn't help you."

I opened my eyes, Klaus and the others were pushing against me. I couldn't hold on. With a groan I pushed out with all the strength I had and slumped to the floor. A moment later I was yanked up by my hair, I yelped. Klaus grinned down at me, fangs gleaming. He bit down savagely on my neck. Eventually he pulled away, my blood dripping down his chin and splattering on the floor. My eyelids drooped as he bit into my arms, the other side of my neck, my back.

"You should know better than to cross me, Alexandra, you do know what happens to those who cross me, don't you?" Klaus drawled "I ruin them".

I cried out as he pulled my arm behind my back. One of his lackeys dragged a chair other and some chains. Klaus threw me into the seat and the other guy tied me up. Klaus paraded in front of me, tossing a stake from hand to hand.

"You know, Alex, I really can't understand you. I did you a favour. I turned you into a hybrid. I didn't kill you like I killed your family. I spared you. You repay my _kindness_ by conspiring with my brother and fleeing. You crossed me. Do you know why I needed you?"

"My family's bloodline, its strong, it poses a threat to you" I muttered.

"Well yes, sweetheart, that was part of it. But surely if you were just a threat to me I would have killed you along with your family?" Klaus remarked.

He had a point.

"Your blood, your lineage…it has strange properties to say the least. It's what allows you to overrule my compulsion. Your blood is what allowed you to become a hybrid, only your blood, any other witch loses her magic once changed" Klaus explained "And your blood, makes one hell of a weapon"

"What do you mean? I don't understand" I asked.

Klaus chuckled to himself. From a table he picked up a little bottle and a dropper. Using the dropper he sucked up the red liquid inside. My blood. He grabbed the arm of a nearby vampire. He let a small ruby red drop of blood seep out onto the vampire's arm. The skin fizzed, bubbling. The vampire thrashed, trying to get away. Klaus finally let go. The vampire dropped to floor, screaming. His eyes flashed to mine, pleading with me like this was my fault. Klaus reached down and placed another drop on the vampires arm. He stopped screaming, his skin repaired, just leaving a faint scar behind.

"You see, Alex? Your blood will get me ultimate control, I just had to find a way of harnessing it, and now I have. The problem now, is that this" Klaus explained, shaking the little bottle of my blood, "is the only blood I have left, and killing you will end my supply. So for now, just like the lovely doppelganger, we will just have to tap a vein"

Klaus must have snapped my neck again because the next thing I knew was that I was still strapped to the chair with a needle in my arm sucking the blood out of me into bags. I glared at Klaus, who was standing in a corner painting a picture. Oh lovely, while I was having blood drained from my body, he was relaxing with a paintbrush in hand.

The door was suddenly flung open and Rebekah walked in. She eyed me in the chair before turning to Klaus. She swung her long blonde hair to the side and poured herself a glass of bourbon.

"So, brother, you finally caught up with her?" Rebekah remarked.

Klaus simply smirked across at her.

"Where are your minions?"

"It's just Franz, Kieron, and Niarla left, she killed the rest before she helped the history teacher escape…what are you doing here anyway, Rebekah? You said you didn't want to be involved in this? You wanted to go to school like a real girl, remember?" Klaus taunted.

"Yeah…that was what I wanted Nik, but, this, I can't let you do it. It's not right. Please stop this" Rebekah begged.

Klaus simply laughed. Rebekah sniffled, shaking her head then looking back up at her brother.

"Then I'm truly sorry, Niklaus, but this has to end"

Klaus put down in his paintbrush.

"What is going on, sister?"

"Now!" Rebekah shouted.

The windows shattered all around us and the doors opened too. A big theatrical entrance. Bonnie stormed inside muttering spells that floored the vampire, either Franz or Kieron, that pounced on her. Behind her, Stefan and Tyler charged in, closely followed by Caroline, Damon, Katherine and Alaric. All were armed with weapons. Damon staked the vampire which had attacked Bonnie while Katherine savagely ripped out the throat of the other. I fidgeted in my chair trying to break free but I was weak from the blood loss.

Niarla, the witch, descended on Bonnie, both slinging curses at the other. Alaric and Caroline rushed to my side, loosening the chains that held me captive. When the chains finally dropped to the floor, I tried to stand up but I was wobbly. Caroline and Alaric steadied me. Damon, Katherine and Rebekah were all battling against Klaus, who was clearly holding his own. I looked around, no white oak stake was at hand. Bonnie was struggling, I could see it and I could feel it.

"We need to get out of here" I told them "we need the amulet"

Katherine kicked out at the witch, throwing her into a wall, Niarla's eyes fluttered before she fell unconscious. Rebekah glanced at me, gave me a look, then kicked her brother threw a wall. Stefan looped an arm around Bonnie's waist and helped her back outside, where two cars were waiting. Damon jumped into the driving seat of one, while Katherine got behind the wheel of the other. We were all in the cars within a matter of seconds. They floored it back to Mystic Falls, knowing that Klaus wouldn't be far behind.


End file.
